Carlos Slim
The monopolist's fortune
Capital entwined with the state.
Rooted Conservative CapitalistOne of 729 ideologies · enter the Conservative Capitalist hall →- Role
- Magnate
- Era
- b. 1940
- Region
- Mexico
- Social band
- Rooted
- Placement
- +88 · +24 · −30
§ Where Carlos Slim stands
3 axesSlim is a classic market capitalist who built his fortune by buying undervalued assets and turning them into dominant businesses. His consortium won control of Telmex in the 1990 privatisation, and his companies' share of Mexican fixed and mobile lines later led regulators in 2014 to impose special asymmetric rules on América Móvil. He champions private investment and enterprise over state ownership.
Slim has prospered through working relationships with Mexican governments of different parties rather than through open political activism. His Telmex purchase came under the dominant-party PRI government of Carlos Salinas, and in 2001 he joined Andrés Manuel López Obrador, then head of Mexico City's government, in a project to restore the city's historic centre. He has generally avoided partisan campaigning in public.
Slim's outlook is that of Mexico's traditional business establishment: family-centred, discreet and focused on philanthropy rather than social causes. His sons and sons-in-law run much of his business empire, his foundations concentrate on health, education and sport, and the Museo Soumaya, opened in 1994 and named after his wife, who died in 1999, houses his art collection, including one of the largest holdings of Rodin's work outside France.
How close are you to Carlos Slim?
Three statements, one per axis. Answer them and we’ll drop you on the compass next to them.
§ The story
LivingCarlos Slim Helú (born 1940) is a Mexican businessman and investor whose holdings span telecommunications, construction, retail, mining and finance. The son of Lebanese immigrants in Mexico City, he trained as a civil engineer at the National Autonomous University of Mexico and began building a portfolio in the 1960s, forming the conglomerate Grupo Carso and buying companies cheaply during Mexico's 1982 debt crisis. In 1990 his consortium won control of the state telephone company Telmex when President Carlos Salinas de Gortari's government privatised it.
Telmex and its mobile offshoot América Móvil, spun off in 2000, came to dominate Mexican telephony and much of Latin America's, and Forbes ranked Slim the richest person in the world from 2010 to 2013. Critics, including a 2012 OECD review, argued that weak competition kept Mexican telecoms prices high; a 2013 constitutional reform created a new regulator, which in 2014 declared América Móvil a preponderant operator subject to special rules. Slim is also a major philanthropist and art collector, and founded Mexico City's Museo Soumaya.
Notable for
- 01Telecom near-monopoly
- 02World's richest person (2010–13)
- 03Privatisation fortune
Key works & moments
- 1982Buys stakes in many Mexican companies cheaply during the debt crisis.
- 1990His consortium wins control of Telmex in the state telephone company's privatisation.
- 2000Spins off América Móvil, which grows into Latin America's largest mobile operator.
- 2010Tops the Forbes list of the world's richest people, a position he holds until 2013.
- 2014Regulators declare América Móvil a preponderant operator under the 2013 telecoms reform.
§ Minds closest to Carlos Slim
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§ Also in the Conservative Capitalist hall
Enter the hall →§ Common questions
4 answersWhat is Carlos Slim's political ideology?
Carlos Slim is a business magnate rather than a politician, and his outlook is pro-market and establishment-minded: on the 99ideologies three-axis compass, a Rooted Conservative Capitalist. Economically he sits far to the market side (+88), having built his fortune through privatisation and private enterprise. On governance he leans towards working with a strong state (+24), and socially he is moderately traditional (−30), presiding over a family-run empire and favouring philanthropy over social activism.
Is Carlos Slim left-wing or right-wing?
Broadly right of centre economically, though not a partisan figure. Slim is a strong defender of private enterprise and investment, and his empire grew out of the privatisation programme of the early 1990s. Yet he has worked pragmatically with leaders across the spectrum, from the PRI's Carlos Salinas to the left-wing Andrés Manuel López Obrador, and he rarely takes public positions on party politics. He is best described as an establishment capitalist.
Did Carlos Slim get rich from privatisation?
Largely, though not only. Slim was already a wealthy investor when his consortium won control of Telmex in the 1990 privatisation, but the telephone company and its mobile offshoot América Móvil became the core of his fortune. Critics argue that weak regulation let Telmex keep a dominant position and high prices for years, a view echoed by a 2012 OECD review of Mexican telecoms. His defenders point to his investment in networks and to his diversified holdings in construction, retail, mining and finance.
Which minds are closest to Carlos Slim?
On the 99ideologies three-axis compass, the minds closest to Carlos Slim are Alexander Hamilton (96% alike), William McKinley (94% alike) and Charles Foster Kane (94% alike). The furthest is Emma Goldman (2% alike).