Also known as “Don Gregorio” or “Goyo”, Gregorio Perez Companc is an Argentinian investor with an estimated net worth of $1.5 billion as of March 2013. He is the third richest person in Argentina and the 974th in the list of World Billionaires.

Born Jorge Gregorio Bazan on August 23, 1934 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Perez Companc earned his estimated net worth of $1.5 billion as the principal shareholder of Molinos Rio de la Plata which he bought in 1999 from Bunge & Born for $400 million. His career started when he was named director of the Banco Rio de la Plata, the county’s largest private sector bank, in 1968. He bought a controlling stake in the bank from his siblings in 1993 and later sold his shares to the Spanish banking giant Banco Santander in 1997.

Don Gregorio’s earnings have grown when he was the head of Petrolera Perez Companc, a family-based oil and gas conglomerate that was established in 1946. In 2002, he sold the energy conglomerate for $1 billion to Brazilian energy giant Petrobas. By 2009, he stepped down from his active involvement in the business. He divided his entire 75% stake in the food giant and diversified maker of pasta, flour and frozen vegetables to his remaining seven children. As an investor, his interests include energy, finance, construction, telecommunications, food and agriculture.