Millionaire who was homeless twice as a teenager & lived in ‘abject poverty’ tops UK black power list

A MILLIONAIRE who climbed from rags to riches after being made homeless twice as a teen has topped the UK black power list.

Dean Forbes was forced onto the streets for the first time when he was just 14-years-old, but is now boasts a net worth of around £40million.

He described the circumstances surrounding his homelessness at 14 as “a very bad family situation”.

Then when Forbes was 17, his disabled mum lost her job and the teenager had to take on the role as her primary carer – leaving him having to work his way up from “abject poverty”.

The family were forced to live in-and-out of hostels, which heartbreakingly meant splitting them up.

“Both times were very difficult for our family,” Forbes told Business Chief.

He added: “We went into hostel accommodation and the second time, we came out of it by breaking up the family.

“I was of age so I left home and had to go and make my own way.”

The determined teen was desperate to pursue a professional football career but found himself plunged into £88,000 debt as he tried to keep up appearances with his friends.

To help support himself, Forbes took on an entry-level sales job at Motorola call centre.

Forbes added: “That was around the Motorola time so I left home which meant my mother needed a smaller place which we were able to find more easily. 

“Four years later I was actually able to buy her a home.”

Across the next two decades, the businessman worked his way to the top of a major software firm called Forterro.

CEO Forbes saw the company bought out for a staggering $1billion (£823million).

Meanwhile, his own net worth is believed to be around £40million.

And Forbes told the BBC topping the Powerlist 2025 was a “professional and career high”.

“I describe the start of my career journey as a twice homeless failed footballer who found himself doing telesales to service a mountain of debt that he’d accumulated to keep up with football friends,” he said.

“I’m really grateful for that debt because it meant I had to fail at football quickly in order to get into the professional working environment.”

Choosing work meant football took a back step too.

He admitted: “I look back now and realise I can’t say I dedicated my life to it because my friends who went on to have great careers, there’s a complete contrast in the way we approached football.

“I enjoyed it. I loved it so much and the part that wasn’t helpful to me is that it was just a group of my friends from similar estates, so I just laughed six days a week and messed around, played football when it was time to play football, but I wasn’t dedicated to it.”

AN UNSUSPECTED PATH

While he spent his days working for Motorola in telesales, stuck in a windowless room, Forbes’ drive for success was sparked.

The young lad knew he wanted to rise up in the business, and breakthrough in the tech industry.

He rose through the ranks at Motorola, before securing senior level positions at Isis Telecommunications and then software development Primavera.

He was then instrumental in Primavera’s $550million (£460million) sale to American computer technology company Oracle.

This saw him gain his first CEO role for Paris-based KDS, who were then acquired by American Express in another multi-million deal.

Back in 2021, Forbes was appointed CEO of Forterro – a leading Pan-European provider of ERP software for the industrial midmarket.

Quite astonishingly, private markets firm Partners Group bought the company out for a $1billion a year later – retaining Forbes as their CEO.

The inspirational leaders’ business acumen has seen him recognised as the UK’s most influential Black man by the JP Morgan-backed 2023 Powerlist, the annual rundown of the UK’s most powerful people of African, African Caribbean and African American heritage.

Forbes and his wife Danielle have also now set up the Forbes Family Group, a philanthropic organisation.

It aims to help disadvantaged families in poverty and give children positive role models.

He told the BBC: “My experience has made me painfully aware that there is so much talent in these communities – you just need to open the door a crack to give people a chance.”