Mick Davis is Chief Executive Officer of Xstrata plc, a global diversified mining and metals company, listed on the London Stock Exchange and headquartered in Zug, Switzerland. Xstrata has operations and projects in over 20 countries and is one of the largest diversified mining company’s in the world. Xstrata is the world’s largest producer of export thermal coal, zinc and ferrochrome, one of the top five producers of copper, nickel and metallurgical coal and has further investments in platinum group metals and iron ore. Mick was appointed as CEO, Xstrata AG in October 2001 and became CEO and a member of the newly-created Xstrata plc Board in February 2002. Xstrata employs more than 70,000 people and is considered to be at the forefront of sustainable development in its health, safety, environment and community interventions.
Previously, Mick was an Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer of Billiton plc and Chairman of Billiton Coal. Prior to joining Billiton, Mick was an Executive Director of South African state-owned Eskom, one of the world’s largest electricity utilities.
Mick has extensive capital markets and corporate transactions experience. During his career, he has raised over US$35 billion from global capital markets and successfully completed over US$70 billion of corporate transactions. Some of his successes are the creation of the Ingwe Coal Corporation in South Africa; the listing of Billiton on the London Stock Exchange; the merger of BHP and Billiton into the largest diversified mining company in the world; the initial public offering of Xstrata plc on the London Stock Exchange in 2002 and Xstrata’s subsequent acquisitions of MIM Holdings and Falconbridge Ltd., amongst others. He is currently involved in the US$90 billion merger of Xstrata and Glencore where, if successful, he will become Chief Executive of the new combined company.
In a personal capacity, Mick is Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Jewish Leadership Council of the United Kingdom, the umbrella body of the largest Jewish Charities and Institutions in the United Kingdom responsible for the strategic imperatives of UK Jewry. Prior to settling in the UK, Mick played an active role in Jewish communal affairs in South Africa, serving on the executive of the Union of Orthodox Synagogues. Mick continues to actively support South African charitable institutions in his role as Chairman of the UK-based Euro Chai South Africa Trust, which helps to fund a range of old age homes, orphanages and special needs facilities in South Africa. Mick and his wife Barbara, a solicitor, are trustees of the Kew Foundation, which supports the work of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Mick is also a member of the Board of Honorary Directors of the Royal Opera House.
Mick was born in 1958 and brought up in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
Mick is a Chartered Accountant by profession and an alumnus of Theodor Herzl School in Port Elizabeth. He holds an honours degree in Commerce from Rhodes University, South Africa. He was recently awarded an Honorary Doctorate from Bar Ilan University.
Mick and Barbara live in London and have three children – Sarah, Ronit and Eitan.