James Palumbo, Baron Palumbo of Southwark

James "Jamie" Rudolph Palumbo, Baron Palumbo of Southwark (London, 6 June 1963) is a British entrepreneur, author and life peer. He was listed in the Sunday Times Rich List 2015 in 340th place with an estimated fortune of £300 million. The eldest son of property developer Peter Palumbo, Baron Palumbo, Jamie was born in London and educated at Eton College and Worcester College, Oxford.

Early career

From 1984-92, Jamie Palumbo worked in the City of London for Merrill Lynch and Morgan Grenfell in equity capital markets and property finance.

Ministry of Sound

In September 1991 Palumbo, together with his school friend Humphrey Waterhouse and DJ Justin Berkmann, founded the Ministry of Sound nightclub in South London. Initially Palumbo lost control of the club to drug dealers, and a fight to regain control ensued.

Ministry of Sound has expanded into a number of areas including recorded music, live events, digital media and merchandise. Ministry of Sound Recordings has sold over 55 million albums and is the largest independent music company in the world. In 2001 Palumbo sold 16% of the business to 3i for £24 million.