Antony P. Ressler (born October 12, 1960) is an American billionaire businessman. He co-founded the private equity firms Apollo Global Management in 1990,[1] and Ares Management in 1997.[2] As of May 2024, his net worth was estimated by Forbes at $11.3 billion.[3]
Tony Ressler
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|---|---|
| Born | (1960-10-12) October 12, 1960 (age 63)
Washington D.C., U.S.
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| Education | Georgetown University (BSFS) Columbia University (MBA) |
| Occupation(s) | Businessman, investor, hedge fund manager, investment banker |
| Known for | Co-founder of Apollo Management; co-founder of Ares Management; minority owner of the Milwaukee Brewers; principal owner of the Atlanta Hawks |
| Spouse |
(m. 1989) |
| Children | 4 |
| Relatives | Debra Black (sister) Leon Black (brother-in-law) |
Ressler was born in 1960 to a Jewish family,[4][5] one of five children of Dorothy and Ira Ressler.[6] His father was an attorney and World War II veteran.[6] Ressler earned a BSFS from Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service and an MBA from Columbia Business School.[7] After graduating, he worked at Drexel Burnham Lambert, eventually reaching senior vice president in the high yield bond department with responsibility for the new issue/syndicate desk.[7]
In 1990, on the heels of the collapse of Drexel Burnham Lambert, he co-founded the private equity firm Apollo Global Management with Leon Black, Drexel's managing director, head of the Mergers & Acquisitions Group, and co-head of the Corporate Finance Department; 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; and Marc Rowan, Josh Harris and Michael Gross, all of whom worked under Black in the mergers and acquisitions department.[8][9][10][11] In 1997, he co-founded Ares Management with former Apollo Global Management co-worker John H. Kissick and Bennett Rosenthal, who joined the group from the global leveraged finance group at Merrill Lynch.[12]
Ressler is a member of the executive committee of the board of directors of the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center; finance chair and member of the executive committee of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art; a board member of Campbell Hall Episcopal SchoolinStudio City, California; and one of the founding members of the board and finance chair of the Painted Turtle Camp, an organization that takes children with chronic and life-threatening illnesses on camping trips. Ressler is a supporter of military veterans through the work of The Greatest Generations Foundation.[7]
In 2005, he belonged to an investment group that made a successful bid led by Mark Attanasio to purchase Major League Baseball's Milwaukee Brewers.[13]
Since June 2015 he is the principal owner of the NBA Atlanta Hawks basketball team, when he purchased the team for an estimated US$730 million.[14] It was ultimately sold to him for $850 million.[15][16]
To purchase the Hawks Ressler formed a group that includes former NBA player Grant Hill, Sara Blakely, Jesse Itzler, Steven Price, and Rick Schnall.[17][18]
On June 16, 1989, he married actress Jami Gertz.[4][19][20] They live in Los Angeles,[3] and have four children: Oliver Jordan Ressler (born 1992), Nicholas Simon Ressler (born 1995), Theo Ressler (born 1998), and Abigail Ressler (born 2003). Gertz-Ressler High Academy, a member of Alliance College-Ready Public Schools, is named after the couple.[21] They are members of the Wilshire Boulevard Temple.[4]
Ressler’s sister, Broadway producer Debra Ressler, is married to Apollo co-founder Leon Black.[22] His brother, Richard Ressler, is a principal and founder of CIM Investment management.[23]