'Dubai Bling's Loujain Adada Married Her Billionaire Husband When She Was 25
Netflix’s new reality series Dubai Bling follows jet-setters in Dubai and all of the glam that comes with it. There are lavish parties, stunning fashion, amazing displays of wealth—you know the deal.
One cast member that people already have a ton of questions about is the fabulous Loujain Adada, a.k.a. LJ. While Loujain’s Instagrams are packed with gorgeous modeling shots (she’s an actual working model who has also hosted TV shows), she has a tragic past. Her husband, billionaire Walid Juffali, died in 2016.
But who was Walid Juffali and how did get so wealthy? Here’s what you need to know.
Who was Walid Juffali?
Walid Juffali was a billionaire businessman, born on April 30, 1955, to one of the richest families in Saudi Arabia, per The Daily Mail. In fact, his family runs one of the Middle East’s largest conglomerates with a fortune estimated at about $9 billion, according to The Telegraph.
Walid was chairman of E.A. Juffali and Brothers, the largest privately-owned business in Saudi Arabia, chairman of W Investments (his own investment company), and chairman of Saudi American Banks and the Saudi Cement Company. Put simply, he held a lot of important roles at a lot of big companies.
He went to school in the US.
Yep, Walid headed to America for a degree at the University of San Diego before getting a doctorate in neuroscience at Imperial College, London, per The Daily Mail.
LJ and Walid got married in a lavish ceremony.
This was Walid's third wedding, and it was seriously off the charts. According to Arabian Weddings, the two got married in 2012 in Venice, Italy, and they had a Venetian-themed ball to celebrate, because what else would you expect?! LJ was just 25 to Walid's 60, but that didn't stop the lovebirds from throwing quite a bash.
The wedding reportedly cost a whopping $10 million, and Loujain wore a diamond necklace worth $3 million. Combined with her Chanel dress, LJ was literally decked out in millions of dollars worth of clothing. Oh! And Akon was their wedding singer. Casual.
He married LJ while still married to another woman.
There was a little bit of an issue surrounding Walid’s marriage to Loujain, which is that he was already married to another woman at the time: American supermodel Christina Estrada. Having multiple wives is allowed under Saudi law, according to a 2008 study published in Islamic Law and Society.
Christina and Walid got married in 2001, and had been together for about 13 years before their divorce. And ICYMI, Estrada also dated Prince Andrew. She was linked to the now-disgraced prince back in 2000, per The Telegraph.
According to the New York Post, Walid “secretly” married Loujain, which prompted Christina to file for divorce. Walid later said he divorced Christina in Saudi Arabia in 2014 under Islamic law without telling her. But either way, Christina and Walid went through a very public and costly divorce. More on that in a second.
Walid had a huge net worth.
There isn't an exact estimate out there, and estimates in the news have fluctuated, but Walid’s net worth was definitely off the charts. At the time of his death, he was worth a reported £8 billion (or roughly $9.2 billion) according to his obituary in The Independent.
This huge number makes sense given the fact he had “several” properties in the UK, which included amenities like three butlers, six gardeners, and $4.62 million worth of art, according to The Telegraph. One of his properties was a 33,000 square-foot English mansion listed for $42 million (a price cut from its original asking price of $65.5 million), according to the New York Post. That mansion featured 12 bedrooms and 12 bathrooms.
He went through two expensive divorces.
Christina asked for $312 million in the divorce settlement and ended up getting $100 million in 2016, per Vanity Fair. But that wasn't his only divorce. Walid also settled a divorce back in 2000 with his first wife, Basma Al-Sulaiman, for another $62 million, per Arabian Business.
“You have to understand,” Christina told the High Court, per the Post. “I’m moving from [Bishopsgate House] to a five- or six-bedroom home.”
“I have lived this life. This is what I am accustomed to. It is difficult to convey the extraordinary level of luxury and opulence we were fortunate enough to enjoy,” she added.
Walid died in 2016.
Walid battled cancer for a several years before passing away in 2016. He learned of his diagnosis not long after he and Loujain were married, according to the Telegraph. And apparently, LJ says that he died soon after their second child was born.
I don't know about you, but I'm pretty sure LJ's famous late husband will come up quite a bit this season. Stay tuned for more on Dubai Bling.
You Might Also Like
