Kristján Loftsson

Kristján Loftsson (born 17 March 1943) is an Icelandic businessman and a whaler.^[1] He has been the CEO of the commercial whaling and investment company Hvalur hf. since 1974 and is, along with his sister, its largest shareholder.^[2][3][4]

Kristján Loftsson
Born	(1943-03-17) 17 March 1943 (age 81) Hafnarfjörður, Iceland
Alma mater	Wales College Advanced Technology
Occupation(s)	Businessman, Whaler

He began his whaling career in 1956 at the age of 13 as a scout on his father's ship. In 1974, he took over as CEO of Hvalur hf., following the death of his father.^[5]

Personal life

Kristján was born in Hafnarfjörður, Iceland, to Loftur Bjarnason and Sólveig Sveinbjarnardóttir.^[6] He is named after his uncle Kristján Bjarnason who was killed in the sinking of SS Hekla^[2] by German submarine U-564 in 1941.^[7]

References

1. "Áhrifamaðurinn Kristján Loftsson". Fréttatíminn (in Icelandic). 28 March 2014. p. 29. Retrieved 25 July 2022 – via Tímarit.is.
2. Tryggvi Aðalbjörnsson (10 April 2018). "Meet Iceland's Whaling Magnate. He Makes No Apologies". The New York Times. Retrieved 25 July 2022.
3. Jóhann Páll Jóhannsson (28 June 2013). "Hann er þrjóskari en andskotinn". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). pp. 16–17. Retrieved 25 July 2022 – via Tímarit.is.
4. "Hluthafar stefna Hval". Fréttablaðið (in Icelandic). 8 July 2020. p. 1. Retrieved 25 July 2022 – via Tímarit.is.
5. Anne Chaon (23 June 2010). "For Iceland's whaling king, they're 'just another fish'". AFP. Archived from the original on 14 July 2010. Retrieved 26 July 2022.
6. "Kristján Loftsson". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). 7 September 1987. p. 43. Retrieved 25 July 2022 – via Tímarit.is.
7. "70 ár liðin frá því að þýskur kafbátur sökkti Heklu". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 29 June 2011. Retrieved 25 July 2022.