Kenneth Cordele Griffin was born in Daytona Beach, Florida, to a building supplies executive and a father who worked as a project manager for General Electric. His grandmother inherited an oil business, farms, and a seed business.

While in high school, Griffin operated EDCOM, a discount mail-order education software firm, from his bedroom. He expressed his belief that the job market for computer programmers would decline in the coming decade.

Griffin began attending Harvard College. He made a $5,000 profit by investing in put options on Home Shopping Network and also invested in convertible arbitrage opportunities. He convinced school administrators to allow him to install a satellite dish on his dormitory's roof to receive stock quotes.

Griffin launched his first fund with $265,000, days after his 19th birthday, profiting from short positions on Black Monday.

Griffin graduated from Harvard College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics.

After graduating, Griffin moved to Chicago to work with Frank Meyer at Glenwood Capital Investments, where he managed $1 million of Glenwood capital and achieved a 70% return in one year.

Griffin founded Citadel LLC with $4.6 million in assets under management, aided by contributions from Frank Meyer. His funds yielded returns of 43% in 1991 and 40% in 1992.

Griffin married Katherine Weingartt, his high-school sweetheart. They divorced in 1996.

Griffin and Katherine Weingartt divorced.

Griffin founded the market maker Citadel Securities.

Griffin served on the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago's board of trustees.

Griffin met Anne Dias-Griffin, whom he would later marry, after being set up on a blind date.

At age 34, Griffin was the youngest person on the Forbes 400, with an estimated net worth of $650 million.

Griffin was the lead investor in Aragon Global Management, a hedge fund run by his then wife Anne Dias, which was also seeded with money from Julian Robertson. Griffin lost 20% of his investment in the fund.

Griffin married Anne Dias.

Citadel acquired the positions of Amaranth Advisors at a steep discount.

Griffin purchased False Start by Jasper Johns for $80 million from David Geffen.

Rush E. Simonson dropped his fraud lawsuit against Griffin and apologized.

Griffin donated a $19 million addition to the Art Institute of Chicago, designed by Renzo Piano, named Kenneth and Anne Griffin Court.

During the 2008 financial crisis, Griffin barred his investors from withdrawing money for 10 months. Citadel's biggest funds finished the year down 55%.

Citadel rebounded with a 62% return after a difficult year during the financial crisis.

Griffin purchased a full floor apartment at 820 Fifth Avenue in New York City for $40 million.

Griffin earned $900 million from Citadel LLC.

Griffin contributed to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra's productions at Millennium Park.

Griffin purchased two oceanfront homes at the Four Seasons Resort Hualalai in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, for $28 million.

Griffin donated $11.5 million to the Fourth Presbyterian Church of Chicago, contributing to the construction of a new chapel named "The Gratz Center" in honor of his grandparents.

Griffin worked with University of Chicago economics professor John A. List to study the impact of investment in teachers versus parents on student performance.

Griffin purchased a $50 million 2012 Bombardier Global 6000 private jet.

Griffin donated around $1.1 million to Restore Our Future, a pro-Romney super PAC, during the election cycle.

Griffin purchased homes in Aspen, Colorado, for $10 million and $12.8 million respectively.

Griffin made a $150 million donation to the financial aid program at Harvard University, his alma mater, which was the largest single donation ever made to the institution at the time.

Griffin was elected to a five-year term on the University of Chicago's board of trustees.

Griffin filed a divorce petition in Cook County, Illinois, citing "irreconcilable differences" with Anne Dias-Griffin.

Griffin purchased two apartments at the top of the Faena House in Miami Beach, Florida for $60 million.

Griffin purchased Gerhard Richter's 1986 painting Abstract Picture, 599 for $46 million.

Griffin donated $10 million to the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago to create the Griffin Galleries of Contemporary Art.

Griffin purchased Willem de Kooning's 1955 oil painting Interchange for $300 million and Jackson Pollock's 1948 painting Number 17A for $200 million from David Geffen.

Griffin contributed $2 million to the Freedom Partners Action Fund, a Republican-aligned super PAC backed by Charles and David Koch.

Griffin endorsed Marco Rubio for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination and gave $5 million to a pro-Rubio super PAC.

Griffin donated an unrestricted $40 million to the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Griffin was the target of protestors supporting the Fight for $15 because Citadel owned over 1 million shares of McDonald's.

Griffin contributed $20 million to the campaign of Governor of Illinois Bruce Rauner.

Griffin purchased a penthouse apartment atop the No. 9 Walton luxury condo tower in Chicago's Gold Coast for $58.75 million, breaking the record for the most expensive sale in Chicago history.

Griffin contributed $15 million to the Robin Hood Foundation.

Griffin reportedly purchased Andy Warhol's 1964 painting Orange Marilyn privately for around $200 million.

Griffin's charitable fund donated $1 million to the Obama Foundation.

Griffin's charitable fund made a $125 million gift to support the Department of Economics of the University of Chicago, which was renamed the Kenneth C. Griffin Department of Economics.

Griffin donated $20 million to the Norton Museum of Art.

Griffin was appointed the national finance chair for the New Republican PAC fueling Rick Scott's Super PAC.

Griffin purchased 3 Carlton Gardens, a Georgian mansion in London for $122 million, breaking several records.

Griffin set the record for the most expensive residential sale ever closed in the U.S. when he purchased roughly 24,000 square feet across three floors at 220 Central Park South in Midtown Manhattan for $238 million.

Griffin's charitable fund announced a $125 million gift to the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, the largest gift in the museum's history. The museum was renamed the Kenneth C. Griffin Museum of Science and Industry.

Griffin purchased a 7-acre oceanfront compound in Southampton, New York from Calvin Klein for $84.4 million.

Griffin purchased several properties on Star Island in Miami Beach for a total of $95 million.

Griffin sold his apartments at the top of the Faena House in Miami Beach, Florida at a loss.

Griffin donated $20 million to the Coalition To Stop The Proposed Tax Hike Amendment, a group opposing the Illinois Fair Tax in its 2020 referendum. He later donated another $26.75 million and then $7 million, bringing his total contributions to $53.75 million.

Griffin contributed a total of $66 million to the United States elections.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Griffin contributed $2.5 million to support food services for children in Chicago Public Schools.

Griffin and his partners at Citadel made a £3 million donation to help develop a COVID-19 vaccine and to support NHS Nightingale Hospitals.

Griffin oversaw a $2 million donation from Citadel to Weill Cornell Medicine to help fund the development of new ways to protect people from COVID-19 and identify new cases of the illness.

Griffin's net worth surpassed $20 billion due to an increase in the value of Citadel.

Griffin donated $5 million to Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida.

Griffin attracted criticism for Citadel's role in the GameStop short squeeze. Citadel invested $2 billion into Melvin Capital, which had suffered losses due to its short positions on GameStop.

Griffin donated $5 million to an initiative to provide Internet access to students in Miami.

Griffin purchased the last privately held copy of the United States Constitution at auction for $43.2 million, with plans to display it at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Arkansas.

Griffin gave $5 million to support the construction of Miami's 10-mile linear park and urban trail The Underline.

Griffin created the Ukraine Math and Science Achievement Fund with $3 million, which supports young Ukrainian refugees studying at Cambridge University.

Griffin purchased a waterfront mansion in Coral Gables, Florida for $45.25 million.

Griffin donated $40 million to the American Museum of Natural History in New York to help complete the 230,000 square foot renovation.

Griffin gave $5 million to help launch the Miami Disaster Resilience Fund, which prepares the city for disasters like hurricanes.

The University of Chicago announced a $25 million donation from Griffin to launch an initiative design to train police managers and prevent neighborhood violence.

Griffin donated $130 million to Chicago nonprofits before his move to Florida.

Griffin donated $250,000 to a Miami scholarship program for STEM students, his first donation since moving Citadel's headquarters there.

Griffin, the Carnegie Corporation of New York, and the Walton Family Foundation funded The Education Recovery Scorecard, an analysis of pandemic learning loss.

Griffin gave $25 million, his largest single donation to date in Florida, to the Nicklaus Children's Hospital in Miami.

Griffin partnered with former Google CEO Eric Schmidt to donate $50 million to Schmidt's new scientific research project, Convergent Research.

Griffin contributed $1 million to a political committee affiliated with Miami Mayor Francis Suarez.

Griffin donated $300 million to the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences, and Harvard announced that it would rename its Graduate School of Arts and Sciences after him.

Griffin donated $25 million to Success Academy Charter Schools, New York City's largest charter school network, and gave $20 million to Miami Dade College, where he also addressed the 2023 graduating class.

Griffin established Griffin Catalyst, a platform for his philanthropic and civic work.

Griffin donated $30 million to the National Medal of Honor Museum Foundation to support the construction of a museum in Arlington, Texas, honoring the recipients of the medal.

Griffin and American entrepreneur David Geffen pledged to donate $400 million to the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, the largest single gift in the cancer center's 150-year history.

Griffin backed Nikki Haley for the 2024 Republican primaries and contributed $5 million to her presidential campaign. He also supported David McCormick and Tim Sheehy for Senate races, contributing $10 million and $5 million, respectively.

Griffin announced a gift of $50 million to be used for research at the Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Miami. A new 12-story facility is under construction and will be named the Kenneth C. Griffin Cancer Research Building.

Griffin's philanthropic organization Griffin Catalyst donated $50 million to the Baptist Health Foundation to expand its Miami Neuroscience Institute. The facility is to be named the Kenneth C. Griffin Center at the Baptist Health Miami Neuroscience Institute.

Griffin donated $9 million to fund a math-tutoring program for students in the Miami-Dade County Public Schools, in partnership with the University of Chicago and Accelerate, to address education gaps caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach announced a $7 million gift from Griffin to support the restoration of Phipps Ocean Park, expand community education, and increase accessibility.

Griffin criticized the "failed education system" for anti-Israel protests on campuses, urging Harvard to "embrace our Western values that have built one of the greatest nations in the world".

Griffin contributed $12 million to an effort to defeat a proposed amendment that would legalize recreational cannabis in Florida.

Griffin purchased a duplex at 740 Park Avenue in New York City previously owned by David Koch for $45 million.

Griffin had an estimated net worth of $42.2 billion, making him the world's 34th-richest person.