Ken Griffin buys last Miami plot for $2.98M, completing full block ownership

Topline

Miami city commissioners have approved billionaire Citadel CEO Ken Griffin's purchase of a $2.98 million plot of land in Miami's Brickell neighborhood—the final piece of a block he already largely owns, located directly across the street from his planned Citadel headquarters.

Key Facts

• In a unanimous vote on Thursday, Miami's city commissioners approved the sale of the site at 190 Southeast 12th Terrace, directly across from Citadel's planned Miami headquarters.
• The city owns the land, which currently houses a historic 121-year-old cottage—the original office of Dr. James Jackson, Miami's first physician—and serves as the headquarters of the Dade Heritage Trust.
• In a separate deal, Griffin has agreed to fund the preservation and relocation of the cottage, as The Real Deal first reported. The move still requires approval from Miami's Historic and Environmental Preservation Board.
• Since announcing his hedge fund's relocation to Miami, Griffin has been acquiring properties in the Brickell neighborhood. The Miami Herald estimates he has spent $700 million on area properties since 2022.

Surprising Fact

The Dade Heritage Trust supports the deal to relocate its headquarters from the Brickell plot, executive director Christine Rupp told Forbes. "We know it's going to be a good outcome for our historic headquarters," Rupp said, calling the sale an "amazing opportunity to own our building and own the land," since both the cottage and the land beneath it are city-owned. "Mr. Griffin's company is funding the move of our office, they're also purchasing the lot," Rupp added, though she could not disclose the cottage's destination as the location has not been finalized.

"The Dr. Jackson Medical Office is a tangible link to Miami's earliest days as a growing city with a frontier spirit," David Millar, a spokesperson for Citadel, told Forbes in a statement. "We are proud to help secure its future in Coconut Grove, where it can continue to connect new generations with the people, places, and stories that helped shape Miami."

Forbes Valuation

We estimate Ken Griffin's net worth at $52.2 billion, making him the 35th-wealthiest person in the world as of Thursday. He is the founder and CEO of Citadel, the hedge fund he founded in 1990 that now manages an estimated $68 billion in assets.

Key Background

Griffin founded Citadel in Chicago but announced the company would relocate to Florida in 2022 after he personally moved to the state. Since the announcement, Griffin has acquired significant real estate near his planned Miami headquarters, including paying an estimated $125 million to purchase every condo in a nearby residential tower, as Bloomberg reported earlier this month. The billionaire also spent a reported $106.9 million on a mansion in Miami's Coconut Grove, where he funded a $20 million effort to move a historic property once owned by William Jennings Bryan.

Further Reading

• Billionaire Ken Griffin's Citadel Becomes Latest Company To Move Headquarters Out Of Illinois — Forbes
• Ken Griffin's Citadel Suggests $6 Billion NYC Project May Be At Risk Over Mamdani Tax — Forbes