Ben Navarro

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Ben Navarro
Born1962/1963 (age 58–59)[1]
Williamstown, Massachusetts, US
NationalityAmerican
EducationUniversity of Rhode Island
OccupationBusinessman
Known forFounder and CEO, Sherman Financial Group
Spouse(s)Kelly Navarro
Children4, including Emma Navarro
Parent(s)Frank Navarro

Benjamin W. Navarro (born 1962/1963) is an American billionaire businessman, the founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Sherman Financial Group, LLC, which owns Credit One Bank.

Early life[]

He is one of eight children of Frank Navarro, a college football coach who posed for the Norman Rockwell painting The Recruit.[2][3] He was born in Williamstown, Massachusetts, when his father was football coach at Williams College.[4]

He grew up in Westerly and Chariho, Rhode Island.[5] He lived in Princeton, New Jersey and graduated from Princeton High School, when his father was coaching the Princeton University football team.[4]

Navarro earned a bachelor's degree in finance from the University of Rhode Island.[1]

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.[1]

He left Citigroup in 1997, and in 1998 founded debt-collection agency Sherman Financial Group, LLC, of which he is the chief executive officer (CEO).[1][6] In 2005, Sherman bought a small bank and renamed it Credit One Bank.[6]

Navarro has an estimated net worth of about $3 billion.[2][4] In the financial world, he is known for his Sherman Financial Group, a privately owned firm that filed more lawsuits against defaulted credit-card debtors than others in the industry during COVID-19 lockdowns, according to a recent Wall Street Journal investigation. 

https://www.wsj.com/articles/most-big-debt-collectors-backed-off-during-the-pandemic-one-pressed-ahead-11617804180

Sports interests[]

Navarro owns the Live To Play Tennis Club in Mount Pleasant, Charleston, which has hosted two USTA national junior tennis championships, and five International Tennis Federation women's pro circuit tournaments.[7]

In 2018, he was a bidder for the Carolina Panthers NFL sports franchise. He ultimately lost to David Tepper.[2]

In September 2018, he bought Charleston Tennis LLC, owners of the Volvo Car Open women's tennis event, and the Family Circle Tennis Center and Volvo Car Stadium, through his company Beemok Sports LLC.[7]

Personal life[]

He is married to Kelly Navarro, they have four children and live in Charleston, South Carolina.[2][7]

All four of his children are involved in tennis; Emma is the number two-ranked US junior, younger sister Meggie is also highly ranked.[7]

Philanthropy[]

Navarro's philanthropic ventures are focused on education and mental wellness.

He is the founder of Meeting Street Schools, a South Carolina based network of one private and three public elementary and middle schools serving an entirely under-resourced demographic.[8]

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.[9][10]

In 2020, Navarro, in partnership with the Medical University of South Carolina, founded Modern Minds, a new type of mental wellness center that uses holistic health strategies to help adults living with anxiety or depression.[11]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d "Executive Profile: Benjamin W. Navarro". Bloomberg LP. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  2. ^ a b c d "Potential Panthers owner Navarro is a low-profile billionaire". espn.co.uk. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  3. ^ "Getting to know Panthers owner candidate Ben Navarro". 247sports.com. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  4. ^ a b c "Billionaire's row: A deep look at the potential bidders for the Carolina Panthers". wbtv.com. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  5. ^ "Ben Navarro Bio - Sherman Financial Group". sites.google.com. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  6. ^ a b Shifflett, Shane (7 April 2021). "Most Big Debt Collectors Backed Off During the Pandemic. One Pressed Ahead". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 11 April 2021.
  7. ^ a b c d Courier, James Beck Special to The Post and. "Charleston billionaire Ben Navarro buys Volvo Car Open women's tennis event". postandcourier.com. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  8. ^ Hartsell, Jeff. "Meet Ben Navarro. He bid for NFL team, owns Volvo Car Open and is changing schools". The Post and Courier. Retrieved October 20, 2018.
  9. ^ Hicks, Brian. "Ben Navarro to give $20K a year to Charleston high school grads to help pay for college". The Post and Courier. Retrieved December 17, 2020.
  10. ^ "Editorial: Navarros' gift could be life-changing, for our entire community". The Post and Courier. Retrieved December 17, 2020.
  11. ^ Sausser, Lauren. "SC businessman Ben Navarro and MUSC launch new approach to mental health treatment". The Post and Courier. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
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