In memoriam: Danny Rifkin

Danny Rifkin, founder of MetalX and a scrap industry veteran, died April 1 at age 70, surrounded by family.

A Fort Wayne, Indiana native, Rifkin was a well-known and respected entrepreneur, business leader and philanthropist.

He graduated from Elmhurst High School in 1972 and studied at the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania before earning his degree from the University of Miami in 1977.

Rifkin began his career at OmniSource Corp. in Fort Wayne, eventually becoming president and CEO of the scrap metal recycling company that his family established in 1943. He also was a founding member of Steel Dynamics Inc. (SDI) in Fort Wayne.

Following OmniSource’s acquisition by SDI in 2007, Rifkin served as executive vice president, president and chief operations officer of the company’s Metals Recycling Segment and as a board member.

In 2008, after leaving SDI, he launched North River Capital, a private equity firm based in Fort Wayne. In 2012, Rifkin founded MetalX LLC, also based in Fort Wayne, with his son Neal.

The Rifkins sold MetalX’s ferrous scrap business in late 2021 to Australia-based BlueScope and began to focus on nonferrous scrap. Rifkin said at that time, “Our plan is to execute a growth strategy focused as a nonferrous company. … We have been working on developing a more extensive nonferrous strategy for some time. We see tremendous opportunity for the future in the nonferrous segment, especially related to copper and aluminum. So, as the world moves towards more electrification and lighter weight, and as the use of copper and aluminum becomes more prevalent in everything, we see that as an outstanding opportunity for long-term growth for the company.”

MetalX acquired the assets and business of secondary aluminum melter SRT Aluminum in Wabash, Indiana, which converts aluminum scrap into specification remelt scrap ingot (RSI) in sow and ingot form, in late 2022. The company also selected a 190-acre site in Defiance, Ohio, in early 2024 to construct an aluminum recycling campus, the plans for which include an aluminum slab manufacturing plant, a scrap shredding and advanced sortation facility and a dedicated logistics hub, in partnership with Louisville, Kentucky-based Manna Capital Partners.

Rifkin's philanthropy efforts included founding and leading the Fort Wayne Center for Learning, helping children with learning differences access the support they needed to thrive. He also served as a trustee of the Rifkin Family Foundation, which has supported numerous causes close to the family's heart.

Rifkin supported Jewish life and education, including his local congregation, the Jewish Federation of Fort Wayne and the preservation of Holocaust memorials. His commitment to these causes was deeply rooted in his values, identity and desire to give back to the institutions that shaped him and his family, according to a news release from MetalX, which adds, “Danny will be remembered for his vision, generosity and lasting impact—in business, in community and in the hearts of all who knew him.”