Iris Fontbona

Iris Fontbona
Born	Iris Balbina Fontbona González 1942 or 1943
Birthplace	Chile
Nationality	Chilean
Occupation	Businesswoman, mining magnate, media proprietor
Known for	Controlling shareholder of Antofagasta PLC; wealthiest person in Chile
Spouse(s)	Andrónico Luksic Abaroa (deceased)
Children	3, including Jean-Paul Luksic Fontbona

Iris Balbina Fontbona González (born 1942 or 1943) is a Chilean billionaire businesswoman, mining magnate, and media proprietor who stands as the wealthiest person in Chile and one of the richest women in the world. As the matriarch of the Luksic family, she inherited control of a vast business empire following the death of her husband, Andrónico Luksic Abaroa, in 2005. The family's holdings span mining, banking, manufacturing, shipping, and beverage production, with the crown jewel being Antofagasta PLC, one of the world's largest copper mining companies. As of February 2025, Forbes estimated her family's net worth at approximately US$25.8 billion, placing her at number 70 on the Forbes Billionaires List and making her the fourth wealthiest person in Latin America. Despite her immense wealth and influence, Fontbona is known for maintaining a fiercely private lifestyle, rarely appearing in public or granting interviews, earning her a reputation as one of the most hermetic billionaires in the world.

Early Life

Iris Balbina Fontbona González was born in Chile in approximately 1942 or 1943. Details about her early childhood, family background, and upbringing remain largely undisclosed, consistent with the intensely private nature she has maintained throughout her life. What is publicly known is that she married Andrónico Luksic Abaroa, a Chilean businessman of Croatian descent who would go on to build one of the largest business conglomerates in Latin American history.

Together with her husband, Fontbona raised three sons: Jean-Paul Luksic Fontbona, Andrónico Luksic Fontbona, and Guillermo Luksic Fontbona. The Luksic family's ascent from regional business operations to a multinational empire spanning multiple sectors formed the backdrop of Fontbona's life as she supported her husband's expanding enterprise. The family became deeply rooted in the economic fabric of Chile, with interests that would eventually encompass mining, financial services, beverages, shipping, and media.

Fontbona's life took a dramatic turn with the death of Andrónico Luksic Abaroa on August 18, 2005, after a prolonged battle with cancer. At that point, she assumed control of the family's vast business holdings, transitioning from a private role within the family to the position of matriarch overseeing one of Latin America's most significant corporate empires.

Career

Inheritance and Assumption of Control

Following the death of Andrónico Luksic Abaroa in 2005, Iris Fontbona took control of her husband's extensive business holdings. The Luksic family empire that she inherited was one of the most diversified conglomerates in Chile, with interests spanning mining, banking, manufacturing, shipping, and beverage production. Rather than divesting or delegating entirely, Fontbona assumed the role of the family's controlling figure, overseeing the strategic direction of the group's numerous enterprises.

Her three sons each took on significant operational roles within the family's businesses. Jean-Paul Luksic Fontbona became particularly associated with the family's mining interests, while Andrónico Luksic Fontbona and Guillermo Luksic Fontbona managed other segments of the portfolio. The family tragedy deepened in 2013, when Guillermo Luksic Fontbona died of cancer at the age of 57, a loss that affected both the family and the Chilean business community.

Mining: Antofagasta PLC

The centerpiece of the Fontbona family fortune is Antofagasta PLC, a Santiago-based mining company listed on the London Stock Exchange and one of the world's largest copper producers. The company operates several major copper mines in Chile and has established itself as a key player in global copper markets, a position of growing strategic importance as the world transitions toward electrification and renewable energy technologies that rely heavily on copper.

Under the family's continued stewardship, Antofagasta PLC has maintained its position as a premier mining concern. The company's operations and the fluctuations of global copper prices have been primary drivers of the family's net worth over the years. Jean-Paul Luksic Fontbona has served as the chairman of Antofagasta PLC, representing the family's interests in the company's governance and strategic decisions.

The copper mining operations have been particularly significant in positioning the Luksic family as Chile's wealthiest, given that Chile itself is the world's largest copper-producing nation. The alignment of the family's primary business interests with the country's most important natural resource has reinforced both the family's economic position and its influence within the Chilean economy.

Banking and Financial Services

Beyond mining, the Luksic family's holdings under Fontbona's oversight include significant interests in Banco de Chile, one of the country's largest financial institutions. The family's involvement in banking has contributed substantially to their diversified portfolio and to their influence in Chilean economic affairs. The banking sector has provided a stable complement to the more cyclical mining operations, helping to ensure the family's wealth remains resilient across different economic conditions.

Shipping

The Luksic family conglomerate has also held interests in Compañía Sud Americana de Vapores (CSAV), one of the largest shipping companies in Latin America. The shipping operations have formed part of the family's broader strategy of maintaining a diversified portfolio across multiple sectors of the economy.

Beverage Production

The Luksic family's business interests extend into beverage production, further diversifying the conglomerate beyond its core mining and financial services operations. This sector has added another dimension to the family's portfolio, contributing to the breadth of the Luksic business empire that Fontbona oversees as matriarch.

Media

Fontbona is also described as a media proprietor, with the family holding interests in Chilean media companies. The media holdings have contributed to the family's broader influence in Chilean public life, though specific details of these operations remain relatively less publicized compared to the family's mining and banking interests.

Wealth Trajectory

The value of the Fontbona family fortune has fluctuated considerably over the years, driven in large part by changes in global copper prices and the performance of the family's diverse business holdings. In 2012, the family's wealth was significant enough for Fontbona to be listed among the world's forty richest people, with a combined wealth exceeding $1 trillion for the entire group.

By 2022, Fontbona was ranked the ninth wealthiest woman worldwide by Forbes, with a fortune estimated at over $22 billion. In 2023, the family's assets experienced notable growth, with EL PAÍS reporting a growth rate of 18%, bringing the family fortune to approximately $28.8 billion. By February 2025, Forbes estimated her net worth at US$25.8 billion, placing her at number 70 on the global billionaires list and confirming her as the fourth wealthiest person in Latin America.

An analysis of Latin America's billionaire class by Nearshore Americas in 2024 noted the relative stability at the top of the region's wealth rankings, with Fontbona and other long-established families maintaining their positions over the course of the preceding decade.

As of 2025, Bloomberg's Billionaires Index continued to list Fontbona and family as controlling Antofagasta, describing the company as "a Santiago-based mining company and one of the world's largest copper" operations.

Personal Life

Iris Fontbona is known for her intensely private lifestyle. EL PAÍS described her life as "hermetic," noting that she rarely appears in public and does not grant interviews to the media. This reticence has stood in contrast to her status as one of the most prominent figures in Chilean economic life and one of the wealthiest women in the world.

Fontbona married Andrónico Luksic Abaroa, with whom she had three sons: Jean-Paul, Andrónico, and Guillermo. The loss of her husband in 2005 to cancer was followed by the death of her son Guillermo in 2013, also from cancer, at the age of 57. These personal tragedies have marked Fontbona's life even as the family's business empire has continued to expand.

Despite her private nature, the Luksic family has been involved in philanthropic activities in Chile. In 2015, the family made a significant donation during Chile's annual Teletón fundraiser, contributing 3.1 billion Chilean pesos. In 2016, the family made what was described as a historic and multimillion-dollar donation at the Teletón, though the event was also notable for the public reaction it provoked from parts of the audience.

Recognition

Fontbona has been consistently featured in major global wealth rankings, cementing her position as one of the most significant business figures in Latin America. Forbes has included her and her family on its annual billionaires list for many years, ranking her at number 70 globally as of 2025 with an estimated net worth of US$25.8 billion.

She has been identified as the wealthiest person in Chile, a distinction she has held for an extended period. The Financial Post has listed her among the wealthiest individuals when measuring the richest person in each major country.

CBS News has included Fontbona among the world's wealthiest women. A 2015 report by The Washington Post noted that the world's richest women, including Fontbona, had generally inherited their wealth rather than building it through entrepreneurship, reflecting broader patterns in global wealth distribution.

In 2022, Leaders League profiled Fontbona under the title "Copper-fastened fortune," noting that at 80 years old she was worth over $22 billion, making her the ninth richest woman in the world at the time. She has also been featured in Visual Capitalist's ranking of the world's richest people in 2022.

International media outlets, including Spain's El Mundo and Italy's Il Sole 24 Ore, have published profiles of Fontbona, reflecting the international interest in her life and the Luksic family fortune. Latin Business Daily has also included her among the 100 richest people in Latin America.

Legacy

Iris Fontbona's legacy is inextricable from that of the broader Luksic family and the business empire they have built over decades. As the controlling matriarch of one of Latin America's largest family conglomerates, she has overseen the continuation and growth of a business portfolio that spans mining, banking, shipping, manufacturing, beverages, and media.

The family's control of Antofagasta PLC, one of the world's major copper producers, positions the Luksic empire at the intersection of Chile's most important industry and a commodity of growing global strategic significance. As the world's demand for copper increases with the expansion of electric vehicles, renewable energy infrastructure, and digital technologies, the mining assets that form the core of the Fontbona family fortune are likely to remain central to global economic developments.

Within Chile, the Luksic family's economic influence is pervasive, touching banking, media, consumer goods, and natural resources. This concentration of economic power in a single family has made Fontbona a figure of both significance and scrutiny within Chilean society, as reflected in the mixed public reactions during the family's Teletón donations.

The stability of the Fontbona family at the top of Latin America's wealth rankings over the past decade, as noted by analysts, reflects the durability of the business model built by Andrónico Luksic Abaroa and maintained by his widow and sons. Fontbona's role in preserving and growing this empire after her husband's death, while maintaining an almost complete absence from public life, has made her one of the most unusual figures among the world's wealthiest individuals — an immensely powerful economic figure who remains almost entirely unknown to the general public.