BUSINESS
From
1973 to the present,
Gene E. Phillips has held executive positions with numerous companies involved in all types and facets of the financial, insurance and real estate industries.
Gene began his real estate investment career in South Carolina, in 1964. During the next 13 years, he bought, sold and developed all types of real estate properties worth several hundred million dollars, primarily in the eastern United States.
Because most of the investment opportunities in the late '70s were in Texas, Gene packed up his family and his real estate operation, Syntek West, a real estate investment company, and moved to Dallas. During the next 10 years, from 1979 to 1989, Syntek acquired 50 companies and over 1,000 properties worth more than $20 billion, consisting of real estate, insurance and finance.
Perhaps one of Gene's most challenging enterprises was Southmark, an Atlanta-based real estate trust with $100 million in assets. His interest peaked when he realized its stock was trading for less than the value of the real estate it owned. Gifted at understanding and creating complex financial deals, Gene saw an opportunity. With a $15 million investment, he bought enough stock to gain majority control of the company in 1979.
Over the next seven years, Southmark grew from having $100 million in assets to becoming a $17 billion conglomerate with a diversified portfolio of companies and real estate.
In 1982, Gene Phillips, through Southmark, took control of a small oil and gas operation known then as Parker & Parsley Petroleum. In less than 10 years, he grew the company to nearly $1 billion in assets with operations in all phases of hydrocarbon exploration and development.
more >>>
