Leon Black Biography & Net Worth

Leon Black Biography & Net Worth

Leon Black is a billionaire American investor and art collector who specializes in private equity and leveraged buyouts. He is the chairman of Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), and also one of the founders of the private equity firm Apollo Global Management. Here’s Leon Black’s complete biography as well as information about his family, businesses, and many other inspiring aspects of his profession and personal life.

Leon Black’s Early Life

Leon David Black was born in the year 1951 to prominent Jewish businessman Eli M. Black who was best for being the owner of the United Brands Company. His mother, Shirley Lubell, was an artist and sister of Tulsa oil manager Benedict I. Lubell. Leon’s father emigrated from Poland, and in 1975, he committed suicide by jumping to his death from the Pan Am Building in New York. It was later revealed that at the time, federal authorities were investigating claims that United Brands was in shady deals with Honduran government officials.

For his education, Leon Black attended Dartmouth College from where he graduated in 1973 with his Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy and History. He also attended Harvard University graduating with an MBA in 1975.

Leon Black’s Career

He kicked off his professional life with Peat Marwick (which later became KPMG) working as an accountant. He worked with the publisher of Boardroom Reports as well, and also interviewed at Lehman Brothers. He would have had a good time on Wall Street but was told that he lacked the brains and personality to succeed.

For thirteen years until 1990, he was an employee of the investment bank Drexel Burnham Lambert, where he occupied the positions of co-head of the Corporate Finance Division, managing director, and head of the Mergers & Acquisitions Group at different points in time. At Drexl, he was regarded as a “junk bond king” and was considered to be Michael Milken’s right-hand man.

On the heels of the fall of Drexel Burnham Lambert in the year 1990, Leon co-founded a private equity firm which became known as Apollo Global Management. Some other notable founders included: Craig Cogut, a legal representative who worked with Drexel’s high-yield department in Los Angeles; John Hannan, former co-director of international finance at Drexel; Antony Ressler, who served as a senior vice president in the high yield division at Drexel; Arthur Bilger, the former chief of the Drexel’s corporate finance division; and Michael Gross Marc Rowan , and Josh Harris, who all worked under Leon Black in the mergers & acquisitions division.

In addition to all that has been mentioned above, Leon also served on Dartmouth College’s Board of Trustees of from 2002 to 2011. He is currently the chairman of MoMA.

Personal Life & Family

Black has been married to Broadway producer Debra Ressler. She is a melanoma survivor and sister of Antony Ressler, a co-founder of Ares Management.  They have four children together.

In 2007, Leon and his wife made a donation of $25 million to create the new Melanoma Research Alliance. The couple also serve on the organization’s board of directors.

In 2012, Leon purchased the fine art books publisher Phaidon Press. Apollo Global Management played no role in the acquisition. It was an investment that he made privately.

In 2018, he was elected chairman of The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York.

In 1997, he made Jeffrey Epstein one of the main trustees of what is known today as the Debra and Leon Black Foundation. In a letter he addressed to Apollo investors in 2020, he claimed that Epstein provided him with tax and philanthropic advice, to his partnership and other family entities. It has been reported by The New York Times that Leon had paid Epstein more than $50 million for his services from 2012 to 2017. While Leon  has never confirmed the exact sum reported by media outlets, he did reveal that he paid Jeffrey Epstein millions of dollars every year for his work. Although he has never been accused of any wrongdoing or inappropriate conduct, Leon has publicly expressed his regrets for dealing with Epstein. In October 2020, he requested that the Apollo board carry out an independent analysis of his relationship with Epstein, and retained law firm Dechert LLP to do so.

Leon also served on Dartmouth College’s Board of Trustees of from 2002 to 2011. In 2012 he gave $48 million toward the construction of a new arts center at the college.

Leon Black Net Worth

Leon is considered to be one of the brightest and leading investors today who has raked in a huge fortune based totally on investment. He is also looked at as one of the most intelligent and visionary investors right now in the world. He is also a great person who likes to give back to the society as a philanthropist. He has contributed so much to numerous causes, and he is widely appreciated for his contributions to the independent artists and melanoma patients

Today Leon Black net worth is expected to be anywhere around $10 Billion and above. He has been able to make a name for himself and has made his wealth by making numerous investments which turned out to be very profitable for him. Not much is known about him in terms of properties or the things he spends his money on, but he has made grand investment schemes which have all now brought him great success in the industry.