Ben Navarro

Last updated

Ben Navarro
Born
Benjamin W. Navarro

1962or1963(age 60–61)
Williamstown, Massachusetts, U.S.
Education University of Rhode Island (1984)
OccupationBusinessman
Known forFounder and CEO, Sherman Financial Group
SpouseKelly Navarro
Children4, including Emma Navarro
Parent Frank Navarro

Benjamin W. Navarro (born 1962 or 1963) is an American billionaire businessman, the founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Sherman Financial Group, LLC, which owns Credit One Bank. He has an estimated net worth of $1.5 billion according to Forbes . [1]

Contents

Early life

Navarro was born in Williamstown, Massachusetts, one of eight children of Frank Navarro, a college football coach for Williams College who posed for the Norman Rockwell painting The Recruit. He grew up in Westerly and Chariho, Rhode Island. He is of Spanish descent through his father. He lived in Princeton, New Jersey and graduated from Princeton High School, when his father was coaching the Princeton University football team. [2] [3] [4] [5]

Navarro earned a bachelor's degree in finance from the University of Rhode Island in 1984. [6]

Career

Navarro worked for Goldman Sachs for three years, before joining Citigroup in 1988, rising to vice president and co-head of mortgage sales and trading. [7]

He left Citigroup in 1997, and in 1998 founded Sherman Financial Group, a global diversified investment services company. [7] In 2005, Sherman bought a small bank and renamed it Credit One Bank, now a major credit card issuer focused on subprime borrowers. [8]

In 2021, Navarro founded Beemok Hospitality Collection, a hospitality company consisting of hotel, restaurant, and entertainment properties in the Southeast. It acquired Charleston Place, the largest hotel in Charleston at 434 rooms, in October 2021. [9]

Sports investments

Navarro owns the Live To Play Tennis Club in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, which has hosted three USTA national junior tennis championships, and six International Tennis Federation women's pro circuit tournaments. [10] [11]

In 2018, he was a bidder for the Carolina Panthers NFL sports franchise. He lost to David Tepper. [3]

In September 2018, he bought Charleston Tennis LLC, owners of the Charleston Open women's tennis event, through his company Beemok Sports LLC.

In 2022, Navarro funded extensive renovations to Credit One Stadium, a 20-year-old city-owned facility, as a gift to the City of Charleston. The stadium re-opened on April 2, 2022, for the 50th annual Credit One Charleston Open, the largest women's only tennis event in North America. [12]

Also in 2022, Navarro's Beemok Sports bought the rights to the Western & Southern Open. The event features men’s and women’s singles tournaments on the ATP and WTA tour. In 2022, 19 of the top 20 players in the world competed in the Western & Southern Open, which is one of nine tennis events in the world designated as a top-tier tournament for both male and female players. [13] [14]

Personal life

Ben Navarro is married to Kelly; they have four children and live in Charleston, South Carolina. [3] Their daughter, Emma Navarro played tennis for the University of Virginia. Another daughter, Meggie currently plays tennis there. Emma has a career high WTA singles ranking of No. 20, achieved on March 18, 2024, and won the NCAA division 1 women's singles title on May 28, 2021 as a freshman. [7]

In 2021, Ben Navarro contributed $500,000 to a political action committee (PAC) supporting Tim Scott. [15] In 2023, he contributed $5 million to the PAC. [16]

Philanthropy

Navarro's philanthropic ventures are focused on education and mental wellness. In 2008, he founded Meeting Street Schools, a South Carolina-based network of one private and three public elementary and middle schools serving an entirely under-resourced demographic. Meeting Street Schools were founded upon the belief that all children deserve an excellent education regardless of their geographic or socioeconomic circumstances and now serve over 1,800 students. [17]

In December 2020, Navarro announced the Meeting Street Scholarship Fund wherein he pledged to supplement the cost of higher education for any Charleston County high school students who also qualified for the Pell grant and the State's LIFE scholarship, ensuring college opportunities for hundreds of South Carolina high school graduates each year. [18] [19] Since inception, the Meeting Street Scholarship Fund has expanded to an additional 10 South Carolina counties and has awarded $20 million in scholarship dollars to over 500 students. In 2023, the Meeting Street Scholarship Fund announced its aim to expand the initiative to all 46 South Carolina counties which would impact over 2,000 students and amount to $42 million in scholarship dollars. [20]

In 2020, Navarro founded Modern Minds in partnership with the Medical University of South Carolina. It is a new type of mental wellness center that uses holistic health strategies to help adults living with anxiety or depression. [21]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joseph P. Riley Jr. Park</span> Baseball stadium in Charleston, South Carolina, United States

Joseph P. Riley Jr. Park is a baseball stadium located in Charleston, South Carolina. The stadium is named after Charleston's longest-serving mayor, Joseph P. Riley Jr., who was instrumental in its construction. The stadium replaced College Park. It was built in 1997 and seats 6,000 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Johnson Hagood Stadium</span> Football stadium in Charleston, South Carolina

Johnson Hagood Stadium, is an 11,500-seat football stadium, the home field of The Citadel Bulldogs football team, in Charleston, South Carolina, United States. The stadium is named in honor of Brigadier General Johnson Hagood, CSA, class of 1847, who commanded Confederate forces in Charleston during the Civil War and later served as Comptroller and Governor of South Carolina.

The Charleston Open, currently sponsored by Credit One, is a WTA Tour-affiliated professional tennis tournament for women, held every year since 1973. It is the oldest professional all-women's tournament in America with a $888,636 purse. The tournament celebrated 50 years in 2022 at the newly renovated Credit One Stadium located in Charleston, South Carolina.

The Charleston School of Law is a private for-profit law school in Charleston, South Carolina. It was established in 2003 and accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA) in August 2011. The school was founded upon a principle of promoting public service by its students and graduates; each student must perform at least 50 hours of public service before graduation. According to the school's 2021 ABA-required disclosures, 85% of the Class of 2017 obtained full-time, long-term, JD-required employment nine months after graduation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Tepper</span> American billionaire businessman

David Alan Tepper is an American billionaire hedge fund manager. He is the owner of the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL) and Charlotte FC in Major League Soccer (MLS). Tepper is the founder and president of Appaloosa Management, a global hedge fund based in Miami Beach, Florida.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bishop England High School</span> School in Charleston, South Carolina, United States

Bishop England High School is a diocesan Roman Catholic four-year high school in Charleston, South Carolina, United States. It was located on Calhoun Street in downtown Charleston until it moved to a newly constructed 40-acre campus located on Daniel Island in 1998. With an enrollment of 730, Bishop England is the largest private high school in the state of South Carolina. The school was founded in 1915 and was named after John England, the first bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charleston.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Credit One Stadium</span> Tennis stadium in Charleston, South Carolina

Credit One Stadium is a tennis stadium located within the Family Circle Tennis Center tennis complex on Daniel Island in Charleston, South Carolina. Built in 2001, the Family Circle Tennis Center has 17 courts, including the 10,200-seat main stadium, named the Credit One Stadium after Credit One Bank became the new title sponsor in 2021. Since 2001, it has hosted the WTA Tour's Charleston Open, a WTA 500 tournament, and is the only facility to host an event on the WTA Tour that is played on green Har-Tru clay courts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clementa C. Pinckney</span> American politician and pastor (1973–2015)

Clementa Carlos Pinckney was an American politician and pastor who served as a Democratic member of the South Carolina Senate, representing the 45th District from 2000 until his murder in 2015. He was previously a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives from 1997 through 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Credit One Bank</span> American bank

Credit One Bank, N.A., headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada, is a bank specializing in credit cards for borrowers with low credit scores; credit limits for its cards are usually approximately $500. It is an affiliate of Sherman Financial Group and is owned by billionaire Ben Navarro. It owns the naming rights to Credit One Stadium, a tennis stadium in Charleston, South Carolina.

Frank F. Navarro was an American college football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Williams College from 1963 to 1967, Columbia University from 1968 to 1973, Wabash College from 1974 to 1977, and Princeton University from 1978 to 1984, compiling a career head coaching record of 99–99–6. Navarro graduated in 1953 from the University of Maryland, College Park, where he played on the Maryland Terrapins football as a guard under head coach, Jim Tatum. Navarro and the 1951 Maryland Terrapins football team advanced to the 1952 Sugar Bowl, where they beat Tennessee, and were recognized as a national champion by several selections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shelby Rogers</span> American tennis player

Shelby Nicole Rogers is an American professional tennis player. She has career-high WTA rankings of No. 30 in singles and No. 40 in doubles, and has won six singles and two doubles titles on the ITF Women's Circuit. She won the girls' national championship at 17. Her best results as a professional came at the 2016 French Open and the 2020 US Open where she reached the quarterfinals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Citadel Bulldogs wrestling</span>

The Citadel Bulldogs wrestling team represents The Citadel of Charleston, South Carolina. The squad is led by head coach Ryan LeBlanc, and assistant coach Luke Welch. The Bulldogs are members of the Southern Conference and have won conference championships in 1967 and 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2013–14 The Citadel Bulldogs basketball team</span> American college basketball season

The 2013–14 The Citadel Bulldogs basketball team represented The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina in the 2013–14 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bulldogs were led by fourth year head coach Chuck Driesell and played their home games at McAlister Field House. They played a member of the Southern Conference. They finished the season 7–26, 2–14 in SoCon play to finish in last place. They advanced to the quarterfinals of the SoCon tournament where they lost to Wofford.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014–15 The Citadel Bulldogs basketball team</span> American college basketball season

The 2014–15 The Citadel Bulldogs basketball team represented The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina in the 2014–15 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bulldogs were led by fifth year head coach Chuck Driesell and played their home games at McAlister Field House. They played a member of the Southern Conference, as they have since 1936–37. They finished the season 11–19, 6–12 in SoCon play to finish in a three-way tie for seventh place. They lost in the first round of the SoCon tournament to Furman. Driesell was not retained after the season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charleston Place</span> Building in South Carolina , USA

The Charleston Place is a hotel in the historic center of Charleston, South Carolina. It was built in a style to fit with the architecture of surrounding 1800s buildings and opened on September 2, 1986. It is the largest hotel in Charleston at 434 rooms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 The Citadel Bulldogs football team</span> American college football season

The 2016 The Citadel Bulldogs football team represented The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina in the 2016 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Bulldogs were led by first-year head coach Brent Thompson and played their home games at Johnson Hagood Stadium. They played as members of the Southern Conference, as they have since 1936.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016–17 The Citadel Bulldogs basketball team</span> American college basketball season

The 2016–17 The Citadel Bulldogs basketball team represented The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina in the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bulldogs were led by second-year head coach Duggar Baucom and played their home games at McAlister Field House in Charleston, South Carolina. They played as a member of the Southern Conference (SoCon), as they have since 1936–37. They finished the season 12–21, 4–14 in SoCon play, to finish in a tie for eighth place. They defeated Western Carolina in the first round of the SoCon tournament to advance to the quarterfinals where they lost to UNC Greensboro.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2017–18 The Citadel Bulldogs basketball team</span> American college basketball season

The 2017–18 The Citadel Bulldogs basketball team represented The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina in the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bulldogs were led by third-year head coach Duggar Baucom and played their home games at McAlister Field House as members of the Southern Conference, as they have since 1936–37. They finished the season 11–21, 5–13 in SoCon play to finish in eighth place. They defeated VMI in the first round of the SoCon tournament before losing in the quarterfinals to UNC Greensboro.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emma Navarro</span> American tennis player (born 2001)

Emma Navarro is an American professional tennis player. Navarro reached a career-high singles ranking of No. 17 by the WTA and a doubles ranking of No. 120 in June 2024. She played college tennis at Virginia and won the NCAA Singles Championship in 2021. She won her first WTA Tour title at the 2024 Hobart International.

Peter Ayers is an American tennis coach and former player. He played college tennis for the Duke Blue Devils. He currently coaches Emma Navarro.

References

  1. ↑ "Ben Navarro". Forbes .
  2. ↑ Hartsell, Jeff (October 20, 2018). "Meet Ben Navarro. He bid for NFL team, owns Volvo Car Open and is changing schools". The Post and Courier . Archived from the original on August 8, 2023.
  3. 1 2 3 Newton, David (April 12, 2018). "Potential Panthers owner Navarro is a low-profile billionaire". ESPN . Archived from the original on May 7, 2023.
  4. ↑ Igoe, Stephen (February 16, 2018). "Getting to know Panthers owner candidate Ben Navarro". 247Sports . Archived from the original on August 8, 2023.
  5. ↑ Person, Joseph; Peralta, Katherine; Rothacker, Rick (March 16, 2018). "Billionaire's row: A deep look at the potential bidders for the Carolina Panthers". WBTV . Archived from the original on August 8, 2023.
  6. ↑ "URI's College of Business to hold Career Day conference, Oct. 28". University of Rhode Island . October 20, 2016.
  7. 1 2 3 KAUR, ISHMEET (January 19, 2024). "Is Emma Navarro's Father a Billionaire? All You Need to Know About the American Philanthropist Who Owns a Tennis Tournament". EssentiallySports .
  8. ↑ "Community Reinvestment Act Performance Evaluation" (PDF). Office of the Comptroller of the Currency . Archived (PDF) from the original on August 8, 2023.
  9. ↑ Williams, Emily (January 8, 2022). "Charleston Place owner share first details about 'multi-million-dollar' renovations". The Post and Courier . Archived from the original on August 8, 2023.
  10. ↑ Beck, James (September 19, 2018). "Charleston billionaire Ben Navarro buys Volvo Car Open women's tennis event". The Post and Courier . Archived from the original on August 8, 2023.
  11. ↑ "Home - LTP Tournaments". LTP. Archived from the original on August 8, 2023.
  12. ↑ "The Renovation". Credit One Stadium . Archived from the original on August 8, 2023.
  13. ↑ "Western and Southern Open sold by USTA to Beemok Capital". August 15, 2022.
  14. ↑ Hartsell, Jeff (August 12, 2022). "Charleston's Ben Navarro buys Cincinnati pro tennis tournament". The Post and Courier . Archived from the original on August 8, 2023.
  15. ↑ ISENSTADT, ALEX (August 9, 2021). "GOP megadonors flock to Tim Scott, building 2024 buzz". Politico .
  16. ↑ Schwartz, Brian (July 21, 2023). "Peltz, Druckenmiller, Navarro give big to Tim Scott PACs as DeSantis falters". CNBC .
  17. ↑ "Our Schools". Meeting Street Schools. Archived from the original on August 8, 2023.
  18. ↑ Hicks, Brian (December 16, 2020). "Ben Navarro to give $20K a year to Charleston high school grads to help pay for college". The Post and Courier . Archived from the original on August 8, 2023.
  19. ↑ "Editorial: Navarros' gift could be life-changing, for our entire community". The Post and Courier . December 17, 2020. Archived from the original on August 8, 2023.
  20. ↑ Coe, Kenya (July 27, 2023). "Meeting Street fund to expand college tuition help to all 46 SC counties". The Post and Courier .
  21. ↑ Sausser, Lauren (September 21, 2020). "SC businessman Ben Navarro and MUSC launch new approach to mental health treatment". The Post and Courier . Archived from the original on August 8, 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.