Bernie Moreno Net Worth

What is Bernie Moreno's Net Worth and Salary?

Bernie Moreno is an American businessman and politician who has a net worth of $50 million. Bernie Moreno built his fortune through automobile dealerships, technology companies, private investment funds, and real estate before being elected to represent Ohio in the United States Senate. He began his career at General Motors and worked his way into dealership management before purchasing a Mercedes-Benz dealership near Cleveland in 2005. Moreno expanded that single location into the Collection Auto Group, which became one of the largest luxury dealership networks in the Midwest.

Moreno later sold most of his automobile businesses and shifted his attention toward blockchain technology, digital vehicle titles, venture capital, and property investment. He founded Ownum, whose best-known venture became the electronic vehicle-titling company CHAMP Titles. Financial disclosures indicate that Moreno and his wife received $10 million when they sold their interests in the company.

Moreno entered national politics as a supporter of Donald Trump and won election to the Senate in 2024 by defeating three-term Democratic incumbent Sherrod Brown. His political priorities have included stricter immigration enforcement, support for domestic manufacturing, reduced government regulation, lower federal spending, and the development of cryptocurrency and digital-asset industries. As a rank-and-file United States senator, Moreno earns an annual salary of $174,000.

Early Life and Education

Bernardo Francisco Moreno Mejía was born on February 14, 1967, in Bogotá, Colombia. He was one of seven children born to Bernardo Moreno Mejía Sr. and Marta Mejía Pradilla. His father was a physician and medical-school administrator who also held positions in the Colombian government, while his mother worked in real estate.

The family moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, when Bernie was five years old. Moreno became a naturalized United States citizen at the age of 18. He attended Pine Crest School in Florida before enrolling at the University of Michigan, where he earned a bachelor's degree in business administration.

Some earlier professional biographies incorrectly stated that Moreno also held an MBA from the University of Michigan. During his Senate campaign, his representatives acknowledged that he did not earn the graduate degree and attributed the inaccurate listing to a staff error.

Automobile Dealership Career

After college, Moreno began working for General Motors. He later joined the Herb Chambers dealership organization in Massachusetts, becoming a general manager at the age of 26. His responsibilities included overseeing Saturn dealerships during a period when the General Motors brand was attempting to introduce a different approach to automobile sales and customer service.

Moreno moved to Ohio in 2005 and purchased a Mercedes-Benz dealership in North Olmsted, outside Cleveland. He subsequently added dealerships representing brands such as Porsche, Infiniti, Buick, GMC, Aston Martin, Rolls-Royce, Maserati, and Lotus.

The dealerships operated under the Collection Auto Group and related Moreno-controlled companies. At its height, the organization included more than a dozen dealerships and franchises, making Moreno a prominent figure in the northeastern Ohio business community. He received several automobile-industry and regional business awards, including recognition as a finalist for the Time Dealer of the Year award.

Moreno gradually began selling his dealerships. In 2019, he sold seven franchises in the Cleveland area as he shifted his focus toward technology, investment, and real estate. He retained certain automotive interests for several more years but had disposed of most of his dealership network by the time he entered the Senate.

Moreno's businesses also faced employment-related litigation. A Massachusetts jury found that two former dealership employees had not been properly paid overtime and awarded them more than $400,000. Several other overtime claims were subsequently resolved.

Three separate lawsuits filed in Ohio alleged gender, age, or racial discrimination at Moreno-affiliated dealerships. All three were settled without public findings of liability. Two former employees who had sued Moreno personally later said they supported his Senate campaign, and his campaign produced a letter from former female employees who said they had been treated fairly.

(Official U.S. Senate photo by Rebecca Hammel Public Domain)

Ownum and CHAMP Titles

Moreno became increasingly interested in blockchain technology during the late 2010s. He founded Ownum, a company intended to use blockchain and related digital infrastructure to modernize government recordkeeping.

One of the company's principal ventures was CHAMP Titles, which developed technology for replacing paper automobile titles with secure electronic records. The company worked with state governments to digitize vehicle-title systems and reduce the time required to process ownership transfers.

Moreno served on the executive committee of InnovateOhio, a state technology initiative, and on the board of Cleveland's MetroHealth System. Both were unpaid public-service positions. The Associated Press later reported that the two organizations provided early recognition or support for applications of technology associated with Moreno's businesses. Moreno's campaign said he had no role in awarding contracts and that his companies received no income because of his board service.

Moreno sold his Ownum and CHAMP Titles interests before his 2024 Senate campaign. His financial disclosure attributed $10 million in proceeds to the sale of CHAMP Titles interests owned by Moreno and his wife. A separate disclosure valued the Ownum shares he sold at no less than $5 million.

Community and Investment Activities

Moreno has invested in technology startups, private-equity funds, venture-capital partnerships, and real estate projects. His disclosed investments have included interests in AutoTech Fund II, Narya Capital, eToro, Immunai, Historic Investment Fund 2019, and Yellowstone Housing Opportunities Fund III.

In 2018, he provided funding to establish the Center for Sales Excellence at Cleveland State University's Monte Ahuja College of Business. The program was designed to prepare students for careers in professional sales. Moreno also served as chairman of the Cleveland State University Board of Trustees and was inducted into the Cleveland Business Hall of Fame.

Senate Campaigns

Moreno first ran for the United States Senate in 2021, seeking the Republican nomination for the seat being vacated by Rob Portman. He withdrew from the race in February 2022 following a meeting with Donald Trump. JD Vance eventually won the Republican nomination and the general election.

Moreno entered the 2024 Senate race to challenge Democratic incumbent Sherrod Brown. Trump endorsed him during the Republican primary, helping Moreno distinguish himself in a field that included Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose and state Senator Matt Dolan.

Moreno won the Republican nomination and faced Brown in what became one of the most expensive Senate contests in American history. The election attracted hundreds of millions of dollars in candidate spending and outside expenditures, including substantial support for Moreno from organizations associated with the cryptocurrency industry.

Moreno defeated Brown with 50.1% of the vote, compared with Brown's 46.5%. The victory made Moreno the first Latino elected to represent Ohio in the United States Senate.

United States Senate

Moreno was sworn into office on January 3, 2025. He initially entered the chamber as Ohio's junior senator but became the state's senior senator after JD Vance resigned to become vice president.

His initial committee assignments included the Senate committees on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs; Commerce, Science, and Transportation; Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs; and the Budget. Those assignments allowed him to focus on subjects connected to his private-sector career, including automobile manufacturing, financial technology, digital assets, trade, and government regulation.

Moreno has generally aligned himself with Trump and the Republican Party's America First wing. He has supported stronger border enforcement, restrictions on illegal immigration, tariffs and other protections for American manufacturers, reduced federal spending, and legislation intended to establish clearer rules for cryptocurrencies and blockchain businesses.

Financial Disclosures

Bernie Moreno's financial disclosures establish that he is one of the wealthier members of the United States Senate, although the filings do not provide an exact net worth. Members of Congress report assets and debts in broad ranges, which can produce substantially different estimates depending on the calculation method used.

One analysis estimated Moreno's net worth at approximately $139 million. However, that figure appears to overstate his wealth because several properties are listed at their total value even though Moreno and his wife own only a minority interest. Some underlying properties also appear separately under each spouse's trust.

For example, Moreno reported an interest in undeveloped land in Sunbury, Ohio, valued in its entirety at between $5 million and $25 million. Moreno owned 25%, while his wife owned another 5%. A home in Ocean Reef, Florida, was assigned the same $5 million-to-$25 million range, but Moreno reported owning 43%.

A Coconut Grove condominium was also valued at between $5 million and $25 million, but Moreno and his wife each held only a 1% interest. Similar minority interests were disclosed in properties in Washington, D.C.; New York; California; and several Ohio communities.

His larger financial investments included interests worth between $1 million and $5 million apiece in an AllianceBernstein securitized-asset fund, AutoTech Fund II, Narya Capital, Historic Investment Fund 2019, and Yellowstone Housing Opportunities Fund III. He also reported between $1 million and $5 million in a CF Bank account.

Moreno disclosed two mortgages valued at between $1 million and $5 million each and a mortgage of between $500,000 and $1 million on his primary residence. His filing listed a home-equity line in the $250,000-to-$500,000 category but stated that the balance was zero.

Because of the wide reporting ranges, minority ownership stakes, unreported value of his primary residence, and outstanding liabilities, simply adding the upper value of every listed asset would produce a misleading total. A net worth of $50 million represents a more conservative estimate of the couple's real estate equity, investment holdings, business-sale proceeds, and other assets.

Personal Life

Bernie Moreno is married to Bridget Brickley Moreno. The couple has four adult children and has made its primary home in Westlake, Ohio.

Moreno's older brother, Luis Alberto Moreno, served as Colombia's ambassador to the United States and later spent 15 years as president of the Inter-American Development Bank.

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