Stephen A. Schwarzman

This article is about the investor. For his namesake building, see New York Public Library Main Branch.
Stephen A. Schwarzman

Stephen A. Schwarzman speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January 2008
Born Stephen Allen Schwarzman
(1947-02-14) February 14, 1947
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Residence New York City, US
Alma mater Yale University (AB)
Harvard Business School (MBA)
Occupation Co-Founder, chairman & CEO of The Blackstone Group
Net worth US$9.7 billion (February 2016)[1]
Political party Republican
Spouse(s) Ellen Philips (divorced)
Christine Mularchuk Hearst (current)
Children 3 (2 with Philips; 1 stepchild with Hearst)

Stephen Allen Schwarzman (born February 14, 1947) is an American business magnate and financier. He is the chairman and CEO of the Blackstone Group, a global private equity and financial advisory firm he established in 1985 with former US Secretary of Commerce Pete Peterson. His personal fortune is estimated at $12.9 billion, according to Forbes.[2] As of 2015, Forbes ranked Schwarzman at 100th on its World's Billionaires List.[3][4]

Early life and education

Schwarzman was raised in a Jewish family[5][6][7][8] in Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania, the son of Arline and Joseph Schwarzman. His father owned Schwarzman's, a former dry-goods store in Philadelphia.[9]

Schwarzman attended the Abington School District in suburban Philadelphia and graduated from Abington Senior High School in 1965.[10] He attended Yale University during the same period as George W. Bush, one year behind him (both were in the Skull and Bones society)[11][12] and graduated in 1969. He then went on to Harvard Business School and graduated in 1972.[13]

Career

Schwarzman's first job in financial services was with Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette, a now defunct investment bank. After business school, Schwarzman started working at the investment bank Lehman Brothers, where he reached the rank of managing director at age 31.[14] He eventually became the head of Lehman Brothers' global mergers and acquisitions team. In 1985, Schwarzman and his boss Peter Peterson started Blackstone, which originally focused on mergers and acquisitions.[15][16]

When Blackstone went public in June 2007, it revealed in a securities filing that Schwarzman had earned about $398.3 million in fiscal 2006.[17][18] He ultimately received $684 million selling part of his Blackstone stake in the IPO, keeping a stake then worth $9.1 billion.[19]

In 2007, Schwarzman was listed among Time Magazine's 100 Most Influential People in The World.[20]

Schwarzman has served as an adjunct professor at the Yale School of Management and was chairman of the board of Trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts from 2004 to 2010.

In June 2007, Schwarzman described his view on financial markets with the statement: "I want war, not a series of skirmishes... I always think about what will kill off the other bidder."[21]

In August 2010, Schwarzman compared the Obama administration's plan to raise carried interest taxes to Hitler's invasion of Poland in 1939, a comment for which Schwarzman later apologized.[22][23]

Among Blackstone's largest investments were SeaWorld Parks, in 2009. SeaWorld Parks were the focus of the 2013 film Blackfish, a documentary on Killer Whale attacks at these parks and the ethics of keeping them captive. When asked about the film, Schwarzman said on record that SeaWorld trainer Dawn Brancheau should be blamed for her own death, claiming that the veteran animal trainer broke multiple safety rules before she was pulled into a tank and killed by a six-ton orca in February 2010. Blackstone said in a written statement that Schwarzman "misspoke" in response to the question about Blackfish. The firm said its chief executive had not anticipated a question about the film and had not been briefed on the subject. The firm said Schwarzman does not plan to go back on CNBC to correct the record on air.[24][25] SeaWorld, for its part, said unequivocally that Brancheau bore no blame. "Dawn was one of the world's most skilled and experienced marine mammal trainers. Her dedication to safety was among the many reasons she was so respected by her colleagues at SeaWorld and within the worldwide animal training community," the company said in a written statement. "We have never said and do not believe that she was at fault for the events of February 24, 2010."[26][27]

In 2014, Schwarzman was named as one of Bloomberg's 50 Most Influential people of the year.[28]

Schwarzman Scholars

On April 21, 2013, Schwarzman announced a $100 million personal gift to establish and endow a scholarship program in China, Schwarzman Scholars, modeled after the Rhodes Scholarship program. Schwarzman simultaneously announced a fundraising campaign with a goal of $200 million. The Schwarzman Scholars program will be housed at Tsinghua University, one of China's most prestigious universities. The first class of 100 students is slated for 2016, upon completion of Schwarzman College, designed by Robert A. M. Stern, Dean of the Yale School of Architecture.[29] In January 2016, Schwarzman was on the cover of the Shanghai Business Review to share his vision about the Chinese economy against the backdrop of his scholarship.[30] The story was supported by Kevin Rudd, former Prime Minister of Australia and on the International Advisory Board of Schwarzman Scholars.

Personal life

Schwarzman met his first wife, Ellen Philips, during his second year at Harvard Business School, where she worked as a researcher and helped grade essays. She was the daughter of Jesse Philips, a wealthy Ohio industrialist. They were married in 1971 and divorced in 1990. They had two children:[31][32]

In 1995, Schwarzman married Christine Hearst, an intellectual-property lawyer who grew up on Long Island. She was the daughter of Peggie and Peter Mularchuk of Hicksville, New York. Her father was a fireman.[32] She was recently divorced from Austin Hearst, grandson of newspaper tycoon Randolph Hearst. Rabbi Bertram Siegel co-officiated along with the Rev. Sam Matarazzo, a Roman Catholic priest.[9] She has one child from a previous marriage.[35]

With an estimated net worth of $12.9 billion, Schwarzman is ranked by Forbes as one of the wealthiest men in America.[1] He lives in a duplex apartment at 740 Park Avenue previously owned by the Mayflower descendent George Brewster and by John D. Rockefeller Jr. Schwarzman purchased the apartment from Saul Steinberg in 2000 for just under $30 million.[36] However, an article in The New Yorker claims that the apartment was purchased for $37 million.[37]

On February 13, 2007, Schwarzman celebrated his 60th birthday at the Armory on Park Avenue. Guests included Colin Powell, Mayor of New York City Michael Bloomberg, Donald Trump, and Cardinal Edward M. Egan of New York. The climax of the evening was a half-hour live performance by Rod Stewart, for which he was reportedly paid $1 million.[38][39][40][41]

Philanthropy

In 2004, Schwarzman donated a new football stadium to Abington Senior High School—the Stephen A. Schwarzman Stadium.[42]

On March 11, 2008 Schwarzman announced that he contributed $100 million toward the expansion of the New York Public Library, for which he serves as a trustee. The central reference building on 42nd Street and Fifth Avenue was renamed The Stephen A. Schwarzman Building.[43]

On May 11, 2015 Peter Salovey, the President of Yale University, announced that Schwarzman contributed $150 million to fund a campus center in the university's historic "Commons" dining facility.[44][45]

References

  1. 1 2 Forbes: The World's Billionaires- Stephen Schwarzman July 2015
  2. ↑ "Stephen Schwarzman". Forbes. Retrieved 8 December 2015.
  3. ↑ "Stephen Schwarzman: Blackstone's $10 Billion Man". Forbes. Retrieved 2014-11-28.
  4. ↑ http://www.forbes.com/profile/stephen-schwarzman/
  5. ↑ New York Times: "Live From New York, It’s Steve Schwarzman" By MICHAEL J. DE LA MERCED October 21, 2011
  6. ↑ Jerusalem Post: "The world's 50 Richest Jews: 31–40 #33 Stephen Schwarzman September 2012
  7. ↑ New York Times: "Live From New York, It’s Steve Schwarzman" By MICHAEL J. DE LA MERCED October 21, 2011
  8. ↑ Jerusalem Post: "The world's 50 Richest Jews: 31–40 #33 Stephen Schwarzman September 2012
  9. 1 2 New York Times: "WEDDINGS;Christine Hearst, S. A. Schwarzman" November 5, 1995
  10. ↑ http://www.abington.k12.pa.us/shs/?page=hall_past_reward_recipients#2005, December 19, 2009
  11. ↑ Evan Thomas and Daniel Gross, "Taxing the Super Rich," Newsweek, July 23, 2007
  12. ↑ Andrew Clark, "The Guardian profile: Stephen Schwarzman," The Guardian, June 15, 2007
  13. ↑ "The 25 Most Successful Harvard Business School Graduates". Business Insider. Retrieved 2014-11-28.
  14. ↑ David Carey & John E. Morris, King of Capital: The Remarkable Rise, Fall, and Rise Again of Steve Schwarzman and Blackstone, New York: Crown Business, 2010, pp. 13–30
  15. ↑ Blackstone.com – Team
  16. ↑ King of Capital, pp. 45–56
  17. ↑ Blackstone IPO Prospectus, http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1393818/000104746907005160/a2178575z424b4.htm#07NYC1853_1 (pp. 198–199)
  18. ↑ Michael Flaherty, "Blackstone Co-Founders to Get $2.3 Billion Post IPO," Reuters, June 11, 2007
  19. ↑ King of Capital, p. 3
  20. ↑ "Time 100 (2007) – Stephen Schwarzman". Time Magazine. May 3, 2007. Retrieved 2008-11-17.
  21. ↑ The Guardian profile: Stephen Schwarzman, 15 June 2007
  22. ↑ Jonathan Alter (August 15, 2010). "Schwarzman: 'It's a War' Between Obama, Wall St.". Newsweek.
  23. ↑ Neil Brooks and Linda McQuaig (April 1, 2012). "How billionaires destroy democracy". Salon.com.
  24. ↑ Blackstone chief blames Brancheau for own death, contradicting Seaworld. Orlando Sentinel, January 24, 2014
  25. ↑ CEO of SeaWorld shareholder suggests trainer was to blame for her own death. Palm Beach Post, January 24, 2014
  26. ↑ Blackstone chief blames Brancheau for own death, contradicting Seaworld. Orlando Sentinel, January 24, 2014
  27. ↑ CEO of SeaWorld shareholder suggests trainer was to blame for her own death. Palm Beach Post, January 24, 2014
  28. ↑ "Most Influential 50 Are the Bankers, Investors Who Move Markets". Bloomberg. Retrieved 2014-10-31.
  29. ↑ Julia La Roche (April 21, 2013). "Billionaire Steve Schwarzman Has Donated $100 Million To Start His Own Version Of The Rhodes Scholarship". Business Insider.
  30. ↑ Maurits Elen (January 21, 2016). "A Match Made in the Middle Kingdom" (PDF). Shanghai Business Review.
  31. ↑ New York Sun: "Schwarzman in the Spotlight at Library Gala" By BRADLEY HOPE June 18, 2007
  32. 1 2 The New Yorker: "The Birthday Party: How Stephen Schwarzman became private equity’s designated villain" by James B. Stewart February 11, 2008
  33. ↑ New York Times: "Zibby Schwarzman and Andrew Right" June 12, 2005
  34. ↑ New York Times: "Ellen Zajac and Teddy Schwarzman" November 11, 2007
  35. ↑ The Guardian: "The Guardian profile: Stephen Schwarzman" by Andrew Clarke June 15, 2007
  36. ↑ Gross, Michael. 740 Park: The Story of the World's Richest Apartment Building. New York: Broadway Books, 2005.
  37. ↑ Stewart, James B. Profiles: The Birthday Party: How Stephen Schwarzman became private equity's designated villain.
  38. ↑ Landon Thomas, Jr., "More Rumors About His Party Than About His Deals," New York Times, January 27, 2007
  39. ↑ Michael J. de la Merced, "Dealbook – Inside Stephen Schwarzman's Birthday Bash," New York Times, February 14, 2007
  40. ↑ Richard Johnson with Paula Froelich, Bill Hoffmann, and Corynne Steindler, "Page Six – $3M Birthday Party Fit for Buyout King," New York Post, February 14, 2007
  41. ↑ Michael Flaherty, "Blackstone CEO gala sign of buyout boom," Reuters, February 14, 2007
  42. ↑ Stewart, James B. "The Birthday Party". THE NEW YORKER. Conde Nast. Retrieved 5 December 2014.
  43. ↑ Robin Pogrebin, "A $100 Million Donation to the N.Y. Public Library" New York Times, March 11, 2008.
  44. ↑ Yale University Press Release, "$150 Million Gift by Stephen A. Schwarzman to Establish First-of-its-Kind Campus Center at Yale University" YaleNews, May 11, 2015
  45. ↑ http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/12/arts/design/stephen-a-schwarzmangives-150-million-for-yale-cultural-hub.html?_r=0

Further reading

External links

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