Leon David Black was born on the 1st January 1951, in New York City, New York USA, and is of Polish descent. Leon is best known from serving as CEO of the Apollo Global Management group, which he co-founded in 1990 with Antony Ressler, Marc Rowan, Josh Harris, Michael Gross, John Hannan, and Craig Cogut. He has been active in the business industry since 1977.
Have you ever wondered how rich Leon Black is? According to sources, it has been estimated that Leon Black`s overall net worth is $5 billion, an amount acquired through his successful business ventures.
Leon Black Net Worth $5 Billion
Leon grew up in New York; his father was the renowned businessman Eli M. Black, best known as a founding member of the United Brands Company. Leon`s mother, Shirley Lubel, was a painter, who had a huge impact on Leon, as he is now known as an art collector. Regarding his education, Leon attended Dartmouth College, from which he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy and History in 1973. He followed through by enrolling at Harvard University, from which he acquired Master of Business Administration degree in 1975.
His professional career began soon after he finished his education; in 1977, he found employment with Drexler Burnham Lambert, starting as a managing director of acquisitions and mergers, but soon his involvement increased, and eventually he became one of the officers of the Finance Department. However, the bank declared bankruptcy in 1990, and Leon became unemployed. Regardless, his net worth had received a solid start.
Nevertheless, in 1990 he co-founded a private equity group, which focused on bargain buyouts and special transactions, Apollo Global Management, with several others colleagues form his previous job. From that point on, Leon`s career and net worth has been on a constant rise; the company`s value has now doubled in value and in its previous year, the company recorded a profit of more than $1.3 billion, which was the best so far.
Some of the largest and most profitable deals of the company include the acquisition of Berry Plastics Corporation, a maker of plastic containers, for $2.25 billion in 2006; the next year Apollo announced the $3.1 billion leveraged buyout of costume jewelry retailer, Claire’s Stores. Furthermore, in 2012, Apollo acquired the education division of The McGraw-Hill Companies, entitled McGraw-Hill Education, for around $2.5 billion, and in 2013, Apollo group was the only bidder for the snacks business Hostess Brands, buying it in a deal worth around $400 million. All these acquisitions had a positive effect on Leon’s net worth.
Latest ventures of the company include a successful buyout of the OM Group for $1.03 billion, and also a successful acquisition of CEC Entertainment for $1 billion.
Thanks to his successful business projects Leon has earned several recognitions, including being rated by magazine Forbes, as currently the 283rd richest person in the world, and is in 94th place of the Forbes 400 list.
Black is also recognized for his philanthropic endeavors; he has donated $25 million to form the new Melanoma Research Alliance, together with his wife who is a Melanoma survivor. Leon is also devoted to his alma mater, donating over $40 million to Dartmouth College, and he served on the Board of Trustees for nine years, from 2002 until 2011.
Leon is a passionate art collector; some of his possessions include a picture “Scream” by artist Edvard Munch – it was reported that Leon paid $119.9 million for the picture, which became a highest price ever paid for a work of art at auction.
Regarding his love life, Black is married to Debra Ressler, the sister of his friend and colleague Antony Ressler. The couple has four children, and they currently reside in a house in New York City, which has been estimated to be worth over $40 million.
