Leon Black Quotes
102 Leon Black Quotes
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[In March 2012 on donating $48 million toward a new visual arts center at Darmouth College.] We hope this building fosters creativity among Dartmouth’s students and faculty – that it inspires them to dream big, be courageous, take artistic risks – and infuses them with the life – changing power of the visual arts.
Leon Black
[In September 2012] My father always believed in things where you gave back to society.
Leon Black
[In September 2012] My mother is a great inspiration for me. She’s an artist and her sister’s an artist. And my Uncle’s an artist. So there are a lot of creative people in the family.
Leon Black
[In September 2012] I think that everything that one does in philanthropy is good. Clearly I’ve learned along the way. I think that early one I wrote a lot of cheques to different organizations but I didn’t get that engaged… More recently – in the last five to ten years, there’s been a lot more personal engagement.
Leon Black
[In September 2012 on if he could give all his money away right now where would he give it.] I don’t think I’m the type of person that gives it all away to one thing. Maybe that’s my training in private equity that’s a portfolio approach. Maybe it’s as a problem solver I’m interested in a lot of different fields… I think we’re getting a lot of rewards in terms of cancer research today. And that’s an area we plan to keep on pursuing.
Leon Black
[In September 2012] America especially, is blessed with so many great philanthropists. In history I would have to say the Rockefeller family is so extraordinary. I’m such a great admirer on what they have done generation after generation in so many fields… What the Gates foundation is doing is awesome…
Leon Black
[In September 2012] Mike Milken is a personal friend.
Leon Black
[On something that’s potentially holding back more philanthropy in September 2012] The more wealth that’s created at more levels the better it is.
Leon Black
[In September 2012] When you look at cancer research forty years ago, the money was there – but the science wasn’t. Today the science is there. But the money with all of the government cut-backs is more of an issue.
Leon Black
[In September 2012] I think that philanthropy is very much here to stay.
Leon Black
[In November 2012] Our total assets under management reached $110 billion at the end of the third quarter, reinforcing our leadership position as a multi-product, solutions-driven provider of alternative investment strategies. Amid a volatile and uncertain market, Apollo has generated strong returns for our investors by relying on our value-oriented and flexible investing approach across the Firm’s integrated global platform.
Leon Black
[In April 2013 again] There are many roads to Rome.
Leon Black
[In April 2013] We think it’s a fabulous environment to be selling.
Leon Black
[In April 2013] Over the last 15 months we’ve been a net seller. We’re selling everything that’s not nailed down in our portfolio. And if it is nailed down we’re refinancing it at great rates.
Leon Black
[In April 2013] There’s a time to reap and a time to sell. And right now we’re harvesting.
Leon Black
[In April 2013 based on fed’s easy money policy continuing.] We will continue to harvest much more over the next 18 months than invest.
Leon Black
[In April 2013] Our operating model is one that we are a value investor. We like to buy good companies at low prices. And we like to do it in differing environments.
Leon Black
[In April 2013] Our view right now is the market is pricey, for doing conventional buy-outs. The average transaction in the US over $500 million is being done at a nine multiple of EBITDA. Inexplicably in Europe it’s even higher. It’s nine and a half to ten. I think our view is that when pay that type of multiple you’re pricing for perfection. You have to believe that interest rates are going to stay love for the next five years, that you can get out at the same multiple that you got in at and you have to believe that you can grow that company a lot more robustly than the underlying economy.
Leon Black
[In April 2013] That doesn’t mean that there aren’t opportunities. And when you do find opportunities it’s great to have low cost financing… The financing market is as good as we’ve ever seen it. It’s back to 2007 levels. There is no institutional memory.
Leon Black
[In April 2013] This is not what I call a robust, distressed market, ala ’08 ’09… Distressed is something that you don’t have to have a global economic collapse to find good distressed deals.
Leon Black
[In April 2013] A lot of industries are inherently cyclical.
Leon Black
I love doing business.
Leon Black
Bonus
[On Leon Black] I wish museum directors knew as much about art as Leon Black does. Nobody has his wingspan.
Richard Feigen
Leon is a vulture fund operator. He feeds on carrion. He eats the animals that other animals have killed.
One admiring businessman
Leon lived up to every promise.
George Gillett
[On Leon Black. He] May leave a nickel on the table. But no more than a nickel.
One Wall Streeter
When it comes to distressed investing, Black is like the Michael Jordan of the Bulls. [On his track record as a PE investor is like] The Michael Jordan of the White Sox.
One savvy financial pro
I think he is very creative. Most regard him as pretty scary.
One respecting peer
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