Leon David Black (born 1951) is an American businessman. He specializes in leveraged buyouts and private equity. He founded the private equity firm Apollo Global Management in 1990.
Early life and education
Black is a son of Eli M. Black (1921–1975), a prominent Jewish businessman who emigrated from Poland and was best known for owning the United Brands Company. His mother, Shirley Lubell, was an artist. In 1975, his father committed suicide by jumping out of the 44th floor of the Pan Am Building in New York City. It was later made public that, at the time, federal regulators were investigating allegations that United Brands was bribing Honduran government officials. Black received a BA in Philosophy and History from Dartmouth College in 1973 and a MBA from Harvard University in 1975. He served on the Board of Trustees of Dartmouth College from 2002 to 2011.
Career
From 1977 to 1990, Leon Black was employed by investment bank Drexel Burnham Lambert, where he served as managing director, head of the Mergers & Acquisitions Group, and co-head of the Corporate Finance Department. In 1990, he co-founded, on the heels of the collapse of Drexel Burnham Lambert, the private equity firm Apollo Global Management. Notable founders included: John Hannan, Drexel’s former co-director of international finance; Craig Cogut, a lawyer who worked with Drexel’s high-yield division in Los Angeles; Arthur Bilger, the former head of the Drexel’s corporate finance department; Antony Ressler, who worked as a senior vice president in Drexel’s high yield department with responsibility for the new issue/syndicate desk; and Marc Rowan, Josh Harris and Michael Gross, who all worked under Black in the mergers and acquisitions department.
Source: