In an industry whose top executives don’t make small change, Steve Schwarzman once again took home the most money among private equity titans for the year.
The Blackstone Group LP co-founder received $378 million in dividends on his stock ownership in 2016, according to calculations based on the firm’s annual report filed Friday with U.S. regulators. Including his cut of deal profits, salary and other compensation, Schwarzman took home $425 million, down from $734.2 million the previous year.Private equity executives are some of the wealthiest financiers, drawing most of their income from dividends on their ownership in the companies. The founders of the largest private equity firms -- Blackstone, Apollo Global Management LLC, Carlyle Group LP, KKR & Co., Oaktree Capital Group LLC, Fortress Investment Group LLC, Ares Management LP and TPG -- are all billionaires, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
KKR co-founders Henry Kravis and George Roberts took home $116.1 million and $119.4 million, respectively, in 2016, according to the firm’s report filed Friday. That’s less than the previous year, when Kravis got $165.9 million and Roberts received $172.9 million.
In 2016 each cousin earned a $300,000 salary and about $63 million in carried interest, or his share of investment gains. Each took home more than $52 million in dividends.
by Melissa Mittelman, Bloomberg | Read more:
Image: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg
[ed. I don't care what Blackstone does. Is any single person worth over $1 billion in two years? I guess this is what's called Making America Great Again (which was when, exactly?). It used to be that we had strong unions that fought for decent wages, basic pension security and a dynamic middle class. Taxes were commensurate with earnings and promoted growth and infrastructure expansion. Government actually held financial institutions, health care and insurance providers accountable for predatory practices. How far back do you have to go to imagine a Great America again, and what would great look like? More trickle-down economics from benevolent billionaires? Throwing immigrants out so there's less competition and diversity? Making everyone shut up about whatever personal deviances they have, let alone give them legal standing? Bringing back industries and communities that technology and global competition have made irrelevant? I don't know. It's like wishing for Back to the Future... unless Biff takes over of course, and then... See also: How the Carried-Interest Loophole Makes the Super-Rich Super-Richer.]
