Guy Laliberté is a Canadian poker player, businessman, arts patron, and billionaire. While he started from humble beginnings as a street performer, he has gone on to live a fascinating life full of high-profile achievements and wealth accumulation. There is a lot of fascinating information about Guy Laliberté, and we will cover it all including his net worth, his art history, his career, and his personal life!
His Career
Guy Laliberté is best known as a professional Canadian poker player. He really started playing in 2006 and was able to finish fourth in the World Series of Poker at the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas. Like everything else in his life, he quickly found success and even went on to find his own tournaments.
He got his start playing in both live tournaments and Vegas style online casinos and slots available in Canada. You can win a lot of money on these sites as they are reviewed by experts based on their available bonuses, the availability of free slots, and their mobile compatibility. After reviewing more than 1,200 slots, you can find the best casinos to win real money from their recommendations.
In 2011, he launched a $1 million buy-in poker tournament. Part of the profit from this tournament was donated to Laliberté’s philanthropic organization the One Drop Foundation, which is focused on fair and just access to clean water.
Personal Life
His children have been able to gain some fame of their own. His son, Kami, was a driver competing in the European Junior formulae and won an F4 victory. His daughter, Naima is a dressage rider. He is separated from his ex de facto partner, Rizia Moreira.
One of Laliberté’s more eccentric hobbies includes being Canada’s very first space tourist. He traveled on the Soyuz TMA-16 spacecraft. He devoted his trip to raising awareness about water conservation back here on Earth. This included a two-hour webcast of various musicians performing around the world, and a book called Gaia which showed pictures from his flight. The proceeds went to his water-conservation non-profit One Drop Foundation.
He has also received a number of prestigious awards and honors. He received the National Order of Quebec in 1997, which is the highest distinction that the government of Quebec awards. Similarly, he received the Order of Canada in 2004, the highest honor in the entire country.
Net Worth
Guy Laliberté is an extremely wealthy person. His net worth was estimated by Forbes magazine to be $1.1 billion. This makes him one of the wealthiest Canadians. The wealthiest single Canadian is estimated to be Changpeng Zhao, with a net worth of $16.4 billion.
American actor Joshua Boone’s net worth is much lower than that of Laliberté. But that would make sense because Laliberté has managed to earn a lot of his money from multiple sources. While Boone made his money from acting, Laliberté has a more diversified portfolio.
Busking
His wealth becomes even more surprising when you learn that he started off as a busker. On the streets of Canada, he would play the accordion, eat fire, and walk on stilts for tips from passersby. This is no way to make one billion dollars, but we all have to start somewhere. Of course, this was a long time ago, even before he founded one of his most successful ventures.
Cirque du Soleil
Laliberté founded the world-famous Canadian circus company Cirque du Soleil in 1984. The group was founded with help from the Canadian government as it was celebrating the 450th anniversary of the arrival of Jacques Cartier to Canada. Laliberté came up with the name, which translates to “circus of the sun”, while he was on vacation in Hawai’i.
It was originally meant to be a one-year project, but the government of Quebec wanted it to tour the other provinces. It has since become one of the most successful entertainment ventures in the world. They employ over 4,000 people across five continents and forty countries.
The company earns an estimated $10 million annually. Laliberté sold 90% of his stock in 2015, and a few years later in 2020, he sold the remaining 10% to Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec.
