Office address: 345 Park Ave New York, NY 10154
Website: www.blackstone.com
Year established: 1985
Company type: alternative investment management company
Employees: 4,735+
Expertise: alternative investment management, private equity, real estate, infrastructure, life sciences, credit and insurance, energy, technology, healthcare, retail, logistics, hospitality, financial services, digital infrastructure, transportation, media and telecommunications
Parent company: N/A
Key people: Stephen Schwarzman (CEO), Jonathan Gray (COO), Michael Chae (CFO), John Finley (CLO), Vik Sawhney (CAO), John Stecher (CTO), Christine Anderson (global head), Joseph Baratta (global head)
Financing status: N/A
Blackstone is the largest alternative asset manager worldwide with over $1.1 trillion in assets under management. Its head office is in New York with over 4,735 employees across 26 offices globally. Blackstone serves institutional and individual investors by investing in sectors like real estate, private equity, and infrastructure. The firm manages more than 230 portfolio companies and 12,400 real estate assets, delivering long-term value through dynamic growth.
Blackstone was founded in 1985 by Stephen Schwarzman and Peter Peterson to explore opportunities in mergers and acquisitions. In 1987, they launched their first private equity fund, followed by a real estate division in 1991, which became a major driver in their development. By 2007, the firm went public through a $4.13 billion initial public offering and in 2012, expanded into credit investments.
The firm converted to a C-corporation in 2019 to attract more investors and became the largest alternative asset manager worldwide. Their growth continued with key acquisitions like Hilton in 2007 and Ancestry.com in 2020, surpassing $1 trillion in assets by 2023. Blackstone hit a $50 billion milestone with BREIT in 2024, prompting the firm to lift redemption limits.
Blackstone offers a range of investment services across multiple sectors, delivering high-performing solutions to both individual and institutional investors:
In addition to these, the company also emphasizes businesses like Blackstone Growth and Blackstone Energy Transition Partners. The firm aims to deliver excellent results by stewarding capital responsibly for institutional and individual investors.
Blackstone emphasizes more than just hiring, focusing on employee retention and career development. The company values recognizing talent, acknowledging hard work, and rewarding success, fostering a culture grounded in integrity and professionalism. Their employees' dedication was stated to be the key to building their reputation as a trusted partner, which is why they provide the staff with:
The firm is committed to incorporating ESG principles into its investments and operations so that their responsible practices will generate long-term benefits for stakeholders. Blackstone’s ESG focus spans environmental, social, and governance factors, aiming to create sustainable value for both employees and investors. These efforts are evident through various initiatives that address critical global challenges and improve corporate practices:
The company’s diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) strategy revolves around its people, with a workforce that reflects varied backgrounds and experiences. Their holistic DEI approach enhances the firm’s culture and strengthens their businesses and communities. With a focus on recruiting, developing talent, community involvement, and accountability, Blackstone aims to create an inclusive environment:
Blackstone’s culture upholds excellence, using global expertise and scale to deliver strong outcomes for clients. The firm operates with integrity, earning trust through careful stewardship of capital. Their entrepreneurial mindset fosters innovation, while diverse teams collaborate to champion the best ideas and celebrate successes.
Stephen A. Schwarzman, co-founder, chair, and CEO of Blackstone, has been instrumental in the firm's growth since its founding. His leadership earned him a seat alongside top US executives at President Xi’s table during key discussions on US-China economic relations in 2023.
Schwarzman is committed to philanthropy, having founded the Schwarzman Scholars program at Tsinghua University. He holds an MBA from Harvard and a BA from Yale.
Blackstone's leadership includes top executives responsible for guiding the company's operations and ensuring its continued growth:
Blackstone is expanding its investor base by launching an infrastructure fund aimed at affluent investors, targeting sectors like energy, transportation, and digital infrastructure. This strategy offers high-net-worth individuals access to private market opportunities that provide stable, long-term returns. By focusing on infrastructure, the firm is tapping into growing demand for investments in clean energy and digital services, traditionally dominated by institutional capital.
The company sees huge potential in the private credit market, predicting it could grow to $30 trillion in the coming years. With increasing demand for alternative financing, particularly as banks face stricter regulations, private credit offers businesses more flexible lending options. Blackstone is capitalizing on this trend by offering direct loans and asset-based financing, aiming to lead the private credit sector.
Steeped in finance, Lebenthal turns her considerable influence to accelerate growth for women-led businesses.
The liquidity issue is squarely in the laps of financial advisers who have never had to deal with the difficulties posed by nontraded REITs before.
The move comes just days after Blackstone Inc. announced it would limit withdrawals from its $69 billion fund.
The firm's announcement that it will limit redemptions from the fund sent its stock falling as much as 10%.
Senate Finance Committee Ron Wyden has requested information about private placement life insurance, which can be used to shelter hedge funds and other products from taxes.
Blackstone's CEO says the firm sees a 'huge' opportunity with retail investors and advisers, while a Morgan Stanley executive talked about recent and potential acquisitions.
Blackstone and other PE firms are wagering that off-campus housing will provide better returns than apartments and other residential assets, which have soared in value since the pandemic.
The creation of liquidity in certain alternative products aimed at retail investors has broadened their appeal.
The insurer's life and retirement arm, which has $411 billion in client assets, will be renamed Corebridge Financial once it goes public.
Competitors, who couldn’t figure out how Morgan Stanley was bidding for block trades at such tight discounts, are now swapping 'I told you so’s.'
Investors' demand for alternative investments such as nontraded REITs and business development companies at the start of 2022 is a harbinger for sales over the remainder of the year.
As private equity pours cash into wealth management, financial advisers should be exposing clients to private equity investments.
The asset manager is expanding into private equity with the acquisition of Lexington, which is a big player in the booming secondaries market, which involves buying maturing portfolios from PE investors.
The overhauled compensation structure is tied to revenue production and features a length-of-service award for high performers with additional revenue, which will be paid in restricted stock units.
After a record-setting third quarter of 78 deals, Echelon Partners' data showed 2021 has already beaten last year's record for RIA transactions.
