Germán Larrea Mota Velasco and his family are ranked No. 30 on the Forbes 2026 World’s Billionaires list with a net worth of $67.1 billion. He is the chief executive of Grupo México, Mexico’s largest mining company.
Germán Larrea Mota-Velasco was born on October 26, 1953, and is a Mexican business magnate. He has been chairman, president and chief executive of Grupo México since 1994, and a director since 1981.
Net Worth and Rank
- Forbes 2026 list: No. 30, with $67.1 billion, listed as “Germán Larrea Mota Velasco & family”
- Later estimate: Bloomberg put his net worth at $68.4 billion in January 2026, according to Wikipedia, when he ranked eighth in the world for gains in personal wealth so far that year
- In Mexico: Forbes ranked him the second-richest Mexican, after Carlos Slim, in 2015, 2016 and 2021
Career
- 1978–1989: he founded the printing and publishing company Grupo Impresa and led it until it was sold in 1989
- Southern Copper: chairman since December 1999 and chief executive from December 1999 to October 2004
- Railways: chairman and CEO of Grupo Ferroviario Mexicano since 1997
Grupo México
Founded in 1978, Grupo México operates mining, transportation and infrastructure divisions. It is the largest mine operator in Mexico and Peru, and its railways run more than 11,000 kilometres of track in Mexico and in Texas and Florida. It bought a controlling interest in Southern Peru Copper Corporation in 2004.
Banamex Bid
In October 2025 Larrea proposed to buy Banamex from Citibank. Citibank rejected the proposal on October 9.
Environmental Record
According to Wikipedia, Grupo México has faced criticism and legal action over environmental incidents, including a sulphuric acid spill into the Sea of Cortés, the Pasta de Conchos mine disaster and the Río Sonora spill, and its subsidiary ASARCO has been held responsible for pollution at 20 US Superfund sites.
Personal Life
Larrea is married with one daughter and lives in Mexico City. He breeds thoroughbred horses, and his mare Letruska won the Apple Blossom Handicap in 2021, the first horse that had raced in Mexico to win a Grade I race in the United States.
Net worth figures change daily with share prices. Rankings here follow the Forbes 2026 World’s Billionaires list, with wealth measured on March 1, 2026.
Image: A Southern Copper Corporation office building in Lima, Peru, 2024 (file photo; Germán Larrea is not pictured). Photo: AlejandroFC / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
