THE FIRM OVERVIEW
Our Company, Proprietary Capital, & No Distractions
Leon is a diversified holding company for a privately-owned group of entities based in Dallas, Texas. The areas of activity of the Leon family of companies include healthcare, real estate, technology and public and private investments.
Leon has been a leader in the real estate development industry, beginning as a modest, privately-owned company and transitioning into a diverse holding company, capable of operating successfully across various geographies and various industries.
Leon has a history of starting and growing successful companies as well as investing in great companies founded by others. Our humble beginnings started with an entrepreneurial journey in 2006 by founding Leon Capital, which was able to find uniquely advantageous investments during the great financial crisis of 2008. Activities then were limited to real estate projects, but over the years, the company grew substantially. Today, Leon can point to successes around the world and has evolved to become a family of companies that operate in important new areas unrelated to real estate.
Leon is unique in a number of ways. First, and most obvious, is the fact that Leon is a family-owned, private company, which affords a number of unique competitive advantages, such as being able to take a truly long-term view when making business decisions.
Another distinguishing characteristic is the emphasis Leon places on attracting and retaining the most highly qualified personnel possible and compensating them based on our direct ownership. Since we are not a fund or a public company, we generate outsized returns from our investments and can afford to reward our people disproportionately well. The men and women who comprise the Leon companies are its most important assets.
The management structure of the family of companies consists of a parent holding company—Leon. Fernando De Leon serves as the CEO of the Leon Holding Company. David Cocanougher and Sean Wood manage the primary real estate businesses, and Hunter Dallas manages the company's various non-real estate businesses, including healthcare operating companies as well as technology assets and financial activities in the public and private arenas.
Each Leon Company Focuses on the Following:
THINK LIKE AN IMMIGRANT
Our founder is an immigrant, always different than the established incumbents in every industry that he invested in. At Leon we think it’s a powerful lens through which to see the complacency of incumbents and the opportunity to innovate. Being different is uncomfortable, it certainly isn’t for everyone, and our job is to perpetually question the status quo.
LONG TERM VIEW
We’re in the business of anticipating the future. A future that is both diverse and complex, and one where people and ideas are moving at a breakneck speed. We work on seeing the evolution of our societies before they occur, so that we can actively mold that future.
ADAPTABILITY
As a privately held company, Leon is able to evaluate changing circumstances and adapt to them. Today, the only constant is perpetual transformation —and a company that can adapt the quickest has a distinct advantage in the marketplace.
AGILITY
Second only to adaptability is the speed with which a company can make decisions and implement them. Leon is a company that can act quickly, more quickly than the rest, and that provides a great advantage over its competitors.
BE CONTRARIAN
It’s not easy to do things differently from everyone else. Leon embraces this concept and has continually been rewarded for it. This has led Leon to find projects and opportunities where others might not.
VALUES & VISION
The Leon Advantage
We invest our own, unbounded proprietary capital. Not beholden to the structural limitations of funds which allows for the best returns and most aligned partnerships.
Ideas
We work closely with our teams on strategic moves that navigate risk, returns and current events.
Guidance
As an investor, we continuously clarify what we believe in and what assets are the most resilient.
Proprietary Capital
When a company has something that can change the industry, we give them the fortitude to create it.
