De Azevedo took over the management of Sonae, a construction materials manufacturer, in the 1970s and subsequently secured a controlling stake in it.

Over the decades he strengthened and diversified it, turning it into a multinational group with interests in everything from property to retailing and even gyms in Portugal Spain, Greece, Germany, Italy, Turkey and Brazil.

Portugal's ministry of economy, Manuel Caldeira Cabral, reacting to the news of his death during a visit to Braga on Wednesday, described it as "a big loss for Portugal”. He told journalists that de Azevedo had been a “very innovative” manager to whom Portuguese society should be grateful in "many aspects", as well as expressing his condolences to the businessman's three children.

Born Belmiro Mendes de Azevedo in Marco de Canaveses, northern Portugal, the son of a carpenter and a tailor who went on to studied engineering at university, the former Sonae chairman regularly made lists of the world's richest people. Forbes in 2008 ranked him at 605th; in last year's ranking he was 1121th.

With estimated wealth of well over $2 billion, according to Forbes - above all thanks to his controlling stake in Sonae - he had long been among the top three richest men in Portugal.