Ian Taylor (British businessman)

Ian Taylor
Ian Taylor, in 2007
Born
Ian Roper Taylor

(1956-02-07)7 February 1956
Croydon, England
Died8 June 2020(2020-06-08) (aged 64)
UK
EducationKing's School, Macclesfield
Merton College, Oxford
OccupationBusinessman
TitleChairman, Vitol
Spouse(s)Cristina Alicia Hare, later Dame Cristina Taylor[1]
Children4

Ian Roper Taylor (7 February 1956 – 8 June 2020) was a British businessman and philanthropist who was chairman and CEO of The Vitol Group, the world's largest independent energy trader. He was also the majority shareholder in Harris Tweed Hebrides, the primary producer of Harris Tweed cloth, which he helped to rescue in 2005.[2][3][4]

Taylor donated money to several prominent institutions, including the Royal Opera House, the board of which he chaired, alongside the Rambert Dance Company, the Victoria & Albert Museum, the Royal Academy and the Vitruvian Group, which he helped to found.[5][6][2]

A long-term supporter of the Conservative Party, Taylor made donations to the Better Together campaign (for the 2014 referendum on Scottish independence) and to the Remain campaign (for the 2016 referendum on the UK's membership of the EU). In 2016 he was reported to have asked for his name to be withdrawn from consideration for a potential knighthood in David Cameron's resignation honours list; this was apparently in response to hostile media coverage.[7] A regular participant in the Speakers for Schools initiative, Taylor was a founding shareholder of the British Americas Cup bid.[2]

The Sunday Times Rich List 2017 estimated Taylor's wealth at £180 million.[8]

  1. ^ Obituary, forbes.com. Accessed December 30, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference LinkedIn was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference Scotsman was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "Top Trader Vitol Has New CEO as Taylor Becomes Chairman". Bloomberg.com. 15 March 2018. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
  5. ^ Millard, Christopher (25 May 2016). "Ian Taylor appointed as Chairman of the Board of Royal Opera House Trustees". roh.org.uk. Retrieved 17 May 2017.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference BMarlowDTelegraph was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ "Remain campaign donor Ian Taylor requests exclusion from honours". BBC News. 2 August 2016.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference RichList was invoked but never defined (see the help page).