Fortune Magazine once dubbed [John] Arnold \u201cone of the least-known billionaires in the US.\u201d\u009d His profile in the public consciousness is almost nonexistent, and he rarely gives interviews. But among hedge funders and energy traders, Arnold is a legend. John D\u2019Agostino, former head of strategy of the New York Mercantile Exchange, says that in Arnold\u2019s heyday, people in the industry would discuss him in \u201chushed and reverent tones.\u201d\u009d In 2006, Centaurus reportedly saw returns of over 300 percent; the next year Arnold became the youngest billionaire in the country. \u201cIf Arnold decided he wanted to beat hunger,\u201d\u009d D\u2019Agostino says, \u201cI wouldn\u2019t want to bet on hunger.\u201d\u009d<\/p>\n
For all the swagger of that description, Arnold himself has virtually none. He is universally described as quiet and introspective. At Enron, a company famous for its brash, testosterone-laced cowboy culture, the perennially boyish-looking trader was reportedly so soft-spoken that his colleagues had to gather in close to hear him at restaurants. \u201cPeople would read into it, and they would say he\u2019s just being cagey,\u201d\u009d D\u2019Agostino says. \u201cAnd then, after a couple of years, people were like, oh, no, he\u2019s actually like that.\u201d\u009d<\/p>\n