- Alex Soros, the 37-year-old son of George Soros, has taken over the reins of his father's empire.
- Alex was once known for his flamboyant, high-flying social life.
- He has turned his image around and is now at the helm of Soros' Open Society Foundations.
Alexander Soros, the 37-year-old son of legendary investor George Soros, has taken over the reins of his father's empire in what is seen as a 180-degree departure from his previous playboy image.
He also sits on the investment committee of Soros Fund Management, which has assets worth $25 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Alexander — who goes by Alex — is now at the helm of George Soros' Open Society Foundations, or OSF, where he plans to continue supporting causes his father championed, such as voting and abortion rights, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday.
George Soros's pick of a successor to his $25 billion empire surprised some, but the 92-year-old businessman told the Journal that Alex has "earned it."
Alex — the elder son of George Soros and his second wife, historian Susan Weber — wasn't always in the pole position to take over the empire.
He managed to gain his father's trust after Jonathan Soros, his 52-year-old half-brother, and the senior Soros had a falling out over two senior hires at the investment firm, per the Journal.
Alex appeared to confirm reports by reposting media reports of him succeeding his father on his verified Instagram account where he also posts photos of himself with powerful people such as US President Joe Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Alex's image rebranding has been years in the making.
In 2008, Alex first made headlines for appearing at flashy parties after media outlets published his photos from his social media feed, per New York Times in July 2012.
The photos showed him "chilling at dad's house in Southampton, drinking 40s while cruising on the family boat, and making out with the babes," per the Times, citing NYC-focused blog CityFile.
The coverage of the revelries and the portrayal of him as a party boy shocked him. "I became this caricature," he told the media outlet.
It was around that time he started to turn to philanthropy, joining the Open Society Foundations Board in 2011 — which drew him closer to his father, per the Times.
Still, the occasional report of his flamboyant party lifestyle continued to pop up, with the New York Post describing parties filled with models, NBA players, and "drunken hide-and-seek" games in a September 2016 report.
At the same time, Alex was working on his Ph.D. thesis at the University of California at Berkeley entitled "Jewish Dionysus: Heine, Nietzsche and the Politics of Literature" — revealing his intellectual side.
It was in fact during his teenage years when Alex started bonding with his father over Latin and Marx, per the Times in its 2012 report.
Alex describes himself as being 'more political' than his father.
Today, Alex has proven himself to his father, but as the successor to George Soros' vast empire, he could be wrapped up in anti-Semitic conspiracy theories targeting the Jewish family.
Over the years, numerous unfounded right-wing conspiracy theories have been lobbed at Soros: He has been accused of conspiring to fill Budapest with refugees, trying to start a civil war in the US, and using his money and power to influence politics.
Alex has already described himself to the Journal as "more political" than his father and has been to the Biden White House 17 times since December 2021, according to the White House visitor logs — putting him under the microscope of right-wing observers.
Still, Alex signaled more donations to left-leaning political candidates in his interview with the Journal.
"As much as I would love to get money out of politics, as long as the other side is doing it, we will have to do it, too," Alex told the Journal.
Open Society Foundations and Alex did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment sent outside regular business hours.