BELGIAN MILLIONAIRE.

Taranaki Daily News, 19 May 1928, Page 16

BELGIAN MILLIONAIRE.

CAPTAIN A. LOEWENSTEIN. Captain Alfred Loewenstein, the Belgian millionaire, said recently that he was going to- start in Canada the richest company la tlie world. He came into prominence in 1986 through his loan offer vo Belgium and France. Captain Loewenstein was born in. 1877, his father being a small Jewish banker in Brussels. Ha built up his fortune gradually by clever speculations. During the war he was engaged in London in conection with the provisioning of the Belgian Army, which he left after the Armistice. He made some profitable deals in Canadian and Brazilion securities, and U a large share-

holder in the Barcelona Traction, Light and Power Company, one of the biggest hydro-electrie undertakings in the world. About 1921 he acquired the fine estate of Thorpe Catchville, near Melton Mowbray, nearly a thousand acres in extent. An expert horseman, he hunts with the Quorn hounds, breeds racehorses and cattle, and has won many prizes with his animals. Ho has also a residence at Biarritz, the Villa Segovia, where he entertains on a largo scale. Ono of his idiosyncrasies is to keep several aeroplanes at his disposal to carry himself, his emissaries, and his guests to and from Biarritz, his offices in London and Brussels, and on business missions. In September, 1920, it was reported that from purely patriotic motives he was ready to lend £10,000,000 to Belgium and £20,000,000 to Franco for two years, without interest In tho ease of his own country and at 2 per cent, in that of Franco, to stabilise tha currsnar It

was stated in Brussels that tho schema was that tho Government should pay for tho £10,000,000 in Belgian notes st 223 francs to the £l. Captain Loewenstein reserved tho right to repurchase these pounds at any time at 175 francs to tho £l. In this way, it was pointed out, he would pocket the difference, which would be 500,000,000 francs. By tliis time it had been made known that tho scheme was not a philantropic one, and that ho proposed to float a company to find the cash. lie laid down the condition that it must be used to stabilise tho franc and establish a gold basis currency. The idea was regarded os a move by Captain Loewenstein's Belgian hydro-cicetric company to extend its operations. Ho himself claimed that tho plan wouM be to the advantage of the two countries, m It would provids them with money nmro elieaply than >t could be obtained U sny etho.- way. But the offer was not accepted.