Simon Property Chairman and CEO David Simon Dies at 64, Son Eli Simon Succeeds Him
Simon Property Group, headquartered in Indianapolis, Marion County, Indiana, announced on March 23, 2026, that its Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President, David Simon, had died peacefully on March 22 surrounded by his family, after a battle with cancer. He was 64. The board and employees mourned his passing; this story is archived under March 22, the date of his death.
David Simon joined the company's predecessor, Melvin Simon & Associates, as Chief Financial Officer in 1990. In 1993, at age 31, he orchestrated the company's initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange, raising nearly $1 billion in what was then the largest real estate public stock offering in history. He became Chief Executive Officer in 1995 at age 33. Under his leadership the company delivered a cumulative total shareholder return of more than 4,500% since its IPO and, through acquisitions including DeBartolo, Chelsea, Mills and Taubman, grew from a regional family business into the world's largest retail real estate company, owning or holding interests in more than 250 properties comprising over 200 million square feet across North America, Europe and Asia.
The company announced the succession effective March 23: the board appointed Eli Simon as Chief Executive Officer and President, continuing also as Chief Operating Officer and a director, and Larry Glasscock as Non-Executive Chairman. The company said operations would continue without interruption. The Simon family said David Simon was most proud of his family, his wife Jackie of over 40 years, their five children and seven grandchildren, and asked for privacy. The announcement was furnished as an exhibit to the company's Form 8-K filed with the SEC on March 24.
Source: U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：位于宾夕法尼亚州的 King of Prussia 购物中心黄昏外景，墙面标有「A SIMON MALL」字样，该中心是 Simon Property Group 旗下物业。Ii2nmd 摄，CC BY-SA 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: The King of Prussia mall in Pennsylvania at dusk, signed "A SIMON MALL"; the center is a Simon Property Group property. Photo by Ii2nmd, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
