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The young countesses who could inherit an €800 million fortune

From La Nación · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

In-depth Sources not specified Context piece
  • Dutch countesses Luana and Zaria, daughters of the late Prince Friso and Princess Mabel, rarely appear publicly and live with their mother in the United Kingdom.
  • Luana studies history and art history at the University of St Andrews, while Zaria recently began university after taking a gap year.
  • Their mother’s investment in payments company Adyen reportedly helped build a fortune now estimated at about 800 million euros, which is expected to pass to the sisters.

A rare public appearance at the Zandvoort Formula One circuit brought renewed attention to Luana and Zaria, the young countesses who are expected one day to inherit a fortune of around 800 million euros.

The sisters are the daughters of the late Prince Friso, King Willem-Alexander’s brother, and Princess Mabel of Orange-Nassau. Their mother has kept them largely out of the public eye so they could live with as much freedom as possible. Both live with her in the United Kingdom and have no official obligations to the Dutch Crown.

Luana, 21, studies history and art history at the University of St Andrews and is close to her cousin Alexia, the second of King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima’s three daughters. Zaria, 20, recently began university after taking a gap year following secondary school, although her field of study has not been specified.

The sisters are outside the line of succession because their father renounced his dynastic rights before marrying Mabel. Their father died in 2013 after spending a year in hospital following an off-piste skiing avalanche accident.

After his death, Mabel received a major shareholding and reportedly increased its value through a successful investment in payments company Adyen. The deal brought her 575 million euros and increased her wealth by 26 percent. Dutch media dubbed her “the Bill Gates of royalty,” and she rose from 121st to 96th in the Quote 500 ranking, the Dutch equivalent of Forbes.

She reportedly owns about 365,000 Adyen shares. Their value reached record levels during the coronavirus pandemic, when her fortune exceeded 1 billion euros. Market volatility later reduced the wealth, but it remains around 800 million euros, a fortune expected eventually to pass to her daughters.

the Bill Gates of royalty

· Dutch mediaThe phrase described Princess Mabel’s business success and investment wealth.
About this summary

Originally published by La Nación in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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