Frank Renouf
Encyclopedia
Sir Francis Henry "Frank" Renouf (31 July 191813 September 1998) was a prominent New Zealand
tycoon and financier
. His obituary in the Dominion was headed: "Flamboyant Renouf shook starch out of financial world".
He was born in Wellington
and educated at Wellington College
and Victoria University College. He then joined the 2nd NZEF as a Captain, was captured in Greece, and spent most of the war in a German POW camp. He then studied for a Diploma at Worcester College, Oxford and was an Oxford Blue in tennis fron 1948 to 1949.
He was a businessman and a stockbroker from 1950, as a partner in the Wellington stockbroking firm of Daysh, Renouf & Co with Harry Edgar Duff Daysh, known as Duff. The firm was originally Daysh, Longuet and Frethey, with Geoff Longuet and Edmund Albertus (Bert) Frethey. Renouf was blackballed from joining the Wellesley Club because of the circumstances of him joining Daysh and Frethey, as business then had a "gentleman's club" atmosphere. (Jesson pages 102-103)
In the 1980s and 1990s he became a prominent business celebrity in Australia
and New Zealand. He introduced unit trusts to New Zealand, and New Zealand's first merchant bank. Upon the death of Duff Daysh in 1975, Renouf later removed the Daysh name from the stockbroking firm Daysh, Renouf & Co and it became known as Frank Renouf & Co. He set up three companies in 1981, Frank Renouf & Co, Renouf Corporation and Renouf Property. In the 1987 sharemarket crash he lost 90% of his fortune.
Frank Renouf was President of the New Zealand Lawn Tennis Association 1985-86. The Renouf Tennis Centre in Wellington is named after him. He was knighted in 1987. He died in 1998 in Wellington.
He was married three times. His second wife (1985) was Susan Renouf
(formerly Susan Peacock and Susan Sangster), a thrice-married socialite.
His third wife (1991) was Michele Renouf
, to whom he was briefly married.
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
tycoon and financier
Financier
Financier is a term for a person who handles typically large sums of money, usually involving money lending, financing projects, large-scale investing, or large-scale money management. The term is French, and derives from finance or payment...
. His obituary in the Dominion was headed: "Flamboyant Renouf shook starch out of financial world".
He was born in Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
and educated at Wellington College
Wellington College (New Zealand)
Wellington College is a state secondary school for boys in Mount Victoria in Wellington, New Zealand.-History:Wellington College opened in 1867 as Wellington Grammar School in Woodward Street, though Sir George Grey gave the school a deed of endowment in 1853. In 1874 it opened at its present...
and Victoria University College. He then joined the 2nd NZEF as a Captain, was captured in Greece, and spent most of the war in a German POW camp. He then studied for a Diploma at Worcester College, Oxford and was an Oxford Blue in tennis fron 1948 to 1949.
He was a businessman and a stockbroker from 1950, as a partner in the Wellington stockbroking firm of Daysh, Renouf & Co with Harry Edgar Duff Daysh, known as Duff. The firm was originally Daysh, Longuet and Frethey, with Geoff Longuet and Edmund Albertus (Bert) Frethey. Renouf was blackballed from joining the Wellesley Club because of the circumstances of him joining Daysh and Frethey, as business then had a "gentleman's club" atmosphere. (Jesson pages 102-103)
In the 1980s and 1990s he became a prominent business celebrity in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and New Zealand. He introduced unit trusts to New Zealand, and New Zealand's first merchant bank. Upon the death of Duff Daysh in 1975, Renouf later removed the Daysh name from the stockbroking firm Daysh, Renouf & Co and it became known as Frank Renouf & Co. He set up three companies in 1981, Frank Renouf & Co, Renouf Corporation and Renouf Property. In the 1987 sharemarket crash he lost 90% of his fortune.
Frank Renouf was President of the New Zealand Lawn Tennis Association 1985-86. The Renouf Tennis Centre in Wellington is named after him. He was knighted in 1987. He died in 1998 in Wellington.
He was married three times. His second wife (1985) was Susan Renouf
Susan Renouf
Susan Renouf, Lady Renouf is an Australian socialite.Born Susan Rossiter to Sir John Rossiter and Joan Stewart, she was married three times:* to Andrew Peacock, prominent Australian politician...
(formerly Susan Peacock and Susan Sangster), a thrice-married socialite.
His third wife (1991) was Michele Renouf
Michele Renouf
Michèle Suzanne, Lady Renouf , is an Australian-born advertising model, now a British national, and a lifelong international television commercials actress with a thirty year membership of British Actors Equity....
, to whom he was briefly married.