Born in Madrid in 1954, Alicia Koplowitz y Romero de Juseu is a Spanish noblewoman and businesswoman whose life has been characterized by inherited grandeur, dramatic personal transitions, and intellectual independence. She and her older sister, Esther, are the daughters of Ernesto Koplowitz, a Jewish businessman who fled Nazi Germany, and Esther Romero de Juseu y Armenteros, a Spanish marchioness. Her childhood was steeped in the world of high society and nascent business, culminating in a tragedy that forced her into a position of great responsibility early on.

Her life changed forever in 1962 when her father died in a horse-riding accident. Alicia, only eight years old, inherited a large stake in her father’s construction company, Construcciones y Contratas S.A. (CYCSA). She received an education appropriate for her station, studying at the prestigious Lycée Français and later at the Complutense University of Madrid. However, her true education came in the high-stakes boardroom battles of Spanish corporate life, a world she would eventually master on her own terms.

Alicia Koplowitz’s early career in the family construction business was indirect. After marrying Alberto Cortina in 1971, she and her sister, Esther, ceded direct control of the company to their respective husbands—a duo notoriously known in Spain as “the Albertos.” Under their management, the company, which merged with a competitor in 1992 to become Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas (FCC), grew into Spain's largest construction and services firm.

The pivotal moment for Alicia came in the 1990s. Following a highly publicized divorce, she sought complete financial and professional autonomy. In 1998, in a landmark transaction that marked her independence, she sold her 28.26% stake in FCC to her sister, Esther, for a staggering €871 million. With this vast liquidity, Koplowitz established her own financial behemoth: Omega Capital. This marked a definitive shift from the concrete of construction to the highly sophisticated, abstract world of global asset management, solidifying her status as a self-directed billionaire investor.

Alicia Koplowitz’s philanthropy is deeply personal and strategically focused, reflecting a profound dedication to mental health, children's welfare, and the arts. Her efforts are channeled primarily through the Fundación Alicia Koplowitz.

The Foundation’s work in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry is her most impactful contribution, aiming to address what she identified as the 'weakest specialty' in the Spanish health system. Her funding provides advanced training grants for psychiatrists, research grants, and specialized clinical care programs, actively pushing for the official recognition and expansion of this field in Spain. Furthermore, she funded the construction and donation of a major Spanish hospital specializing in Multiple Sclerosis. This hands-on approach to social impact, combined with her cultural patronage of institutions like the Prado and Guggenheim Museums, paints a picture of a philanthropist focused on long-term, systemic change and the alleviation of profound suffering.

Alicia Koplowitz embodies a style that fuses aristocratic elegance with contemporary investor chic. Her clothing choices are exquisite, favoring top European haute couture and high-end Spanish designers, often characterized by clean lines, perfect tailoring, and an aura of effortless refinement. Unlike the tech mogul, her aesthetic leans towards timeless, classic luxury, often accessorized with magnificent, understated jewelry and high-complication Swiss watches.

Her lifestyle is defined by her access to and patronage of the world of high culture. She possesses one of the most important and valuable private art collections in Europe, featuring masterpieces by Goya, Picasso, Van Gogh, Modigliani, and de Kooning. Her residences—from her Madrid base to properties abroad—are private sanctuaries that house her collection and reflect a cultivated, intellectual existence. Her luxury is the autonomy to command global capital and curate a world of artistic beauty, moving seamlessly between the high-stakes financial world and the quiet, contemplative realm of a master collector.