Frank Hasenfratz

Frank Hasenfratz (1935 – January 8, 2022) was a Hungarian-born Canadian billionaire businessman, the founder and owner of Linamar, Canada's second largest auto parts manufacturer, with 26,000 employees at the time of his death.

Early life Hasenfratz was an ethnic German, born in 1935 in Szár, Hungary. He left Hungary in May 1957, Canada, fleeing the failed Hungarian Revolution of 1956, first to Austria, then Italy and France. He joined the French Foreign Legion, immediately realized he had made a mistake, and deserted, boarding a freighter bound for Canada. He started a one-man machine shop in his basement in 1964, and then incorporated in 1966 under the name Linamar, named after his two daughters, Linda (current Linamar CEO) and Nancy, and his wife Margaret. He was also inducted into the Canadian Manufacturing Hall of Fame and Canadian Business Hall of Fame.