Robert Sarver was born in 1961, in Tucson, Arizona USA of Jewish descent, and is a businessman, best known to be the majority owner of the National Basketball Association (NBA) team, the Phoenix Suns. He’s owned the team since 2004, but has also endeavoured to purchase other sports franchises. All of his efforts have helped put his net worth to where it is today.
How rich is Robert Sarver? As of late-2016, sources estimate a net worth that is at $400 million, earned through the success of his various investments. He also owns the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) team the Phoenix Mercury, and the Spanish Segunda Division Club RCD Mallorca. As he continues with these investments, it is expected that his wealth will further increase.
Robert Sarver Net Worth $400 million
Robert’s father was businessman Jack Sarver, best known for being the developer of the Aztec Inn and Plaza International Hotel (now Aloft Hotel). When Robert turned 16, he began working for his father’s company, American Savings and Loan, but matriculated from Sabino High School in 1979 and then attended the University of Arizona, graduating in 1982 with a degree in business administration; the following year he became a public accountant. His father would die of a heart attack in the same year Robert finished high school.
In 1984, Robert founded the National Bank of Tucson which would eventually become the National Bank of Arizona. Six years later, he founded a real estate company called Southwest Value Partners. In 1994, he sold the National Bank of Arizona to Zions Bancorporation, and a year after purchased the Emerald Plaza in San Diego. In 1995 he acquired Grossmont Bank, and sold it to Zions Bancorporation two years later. His next major endeavour would be in 2004, when he sold the Emerald Plaza along with other office buildings to Triple Net Properties for $274.5 million, increasing Robert’s net worth significantly. During this time he was the CEO of Western Alliance Bancorporation and also helped Zions acquire Sumitomo Bank of California.
After his numerous business endeavors, Robert started to give focus to his passion for sports, going on a quest to purchase the Phoenix Suns. He met University of Arizona basketball coach Lute Olson who introduced him to Steve Kerr, and in 2004 Sarver was able to buy the team for $401 million. In 2015, he tried to buy the Scottish Rangers Football Club, but his offer was rejected. The following year, he bought RCD Mallorca for another huge sum, and together these projects now consistently support his net worth.
For his personal life, it is known that Robert married Penny Sanders in 1996 and they have three sons; the family resides in Paradise Valley, Arizona. Robert donated to the University of Arizona heart research center, now renamed to Sarver Heart Center in honor of his father, and of which he is part of the Board of Trustees, which was one of the first groups to undertake heart bypass surgery. The center houses over 40 researchers and physicians all dedicated to fight heart disease. Aside from these, Robert is known to play volleyball, tennis, and golf.
