After almost a decade of growth, Haefner was offered what turned out to be the deal of a lifetime when rising US computers services firm Computer Associates bought out Uccel in 1986 for $780 million.
The key to the deal (for Haefner at least) was that no cash changed hands – instead, Haefner emerged with a 24% stake in Computer Associates, making him the largest shareholder of the company.
Today, his family still owns 125,813,380 shares, worth $3.3 billion based on the share price of Computer Associates, which is now known as CA Technologies.
The return Haefner has earned is made even more incredible by the fact the billionaire did not know his way around a computer.
“Walter was technologically interested early on, and even though he doesn’t understand computers he has always been able to empower the right people who do,” Haefner’s lawyer Peter Widmer told Forbes.
Haefner was 52 when he was advised by a doctor (and let’s face it, he must have had some pretty good medical advice throughout his career) to take up horse riding.
In the words of his family, who released a statement after his death, he jumped in the saddle with “typical energetic dedication”. He raced as an amateur jockey in Europe, winning the Fegentri Champion Amateur Championship in 1963 – at the age of 53.
But it was his trip to Ireland to buy a show jumper, and that subsequent meeting with Dermot Weld, that made Haefner a giant of the track.
Racing was Haefner’s major indulgence – he always lived in the same Zurich house he bought in 1945. “I’m a simple man, who has simple pleasures,” he told Forbes.
One of those was philanthropy and it was notable that one of the more touching tributes to Haefner came from a charity called Smile Train, which raises money to pay for cleft lip and palate operations for affected children.
Haefner and CA Technologies’ Charles Wang have poured millions into the charity and were the founding benefactors of the charity in 1999. It has paid for 750,000 cleft palate and lip surgeries for children around the world.
Haefner’s is an amazing story. A technology pioneer at 47, a champion jockey at 52, a US raider at 66 and a billionaire at 80, Haefner worked well into his 90s, checking on his sprawling automotive business every day.
A few key lessons from his career stand out.
Firstly, not being afraid of new technology – even if you don’t understand the intimate workings of that technology – is essential for entrepreneurs who want to stay ahead of the pack in their industry.
Haefner’s willingness to adopt computerised accounting and payroll systems was pioneering and leads to the second lesson – always be on the lookout for new opportunities.
The links between car dealerships and computer services businesses are not exactly strong, but Haefner was able to see an opportunity and understand the power of his products.
Finally, Haefner’s willingness to take stock rather than cash in the Computer Associates deal was both brave and transformative. What Haefner was doing was betting on an idea – it didn’t matter to him that the vehicle that carried his bet changed when Computer Associates bought him out.
The oldest billionaire in the world is now David Rockefeller Sr, grandson of legendary US oilman John D Rockefeller. He is 96.
James Thomson is a former editor of BRW’s Rich 200 and the publisher of SmartCompany and LeadingCompany.
James was the editor and publisher of SmartCompany and LeadingCompany for five years. He is now the Australian Financial Review‘s companies & markets editor, and a former BRW editor.
