The Private Equity Confidence Game
Summary
Bill Cohen discusses his new book on Apollo Global Management, arguing that the firm functions as an unregulated bank with systemic risks due to its massive private credit exposure. The episode explores how the fallout from the Jeffrey Epstein scandal and lawsuits involving Leon Black’s personal life drove Apollo’s strategic pivot from private equity to debt. Cohen also details Black’s psychology, his vast art collection, and the complex financial dynamics that define the modern private credit industry.
Topics discussed
Introduction and guest background
Is private equity a good or bad force?
Bill Black's path from journalism to Wall Street
Leon Black's rise and accumulation of wealth
Apollo as an unregulated bank and systemic risk
Annuities, leverage, and the risk of a bank run
Apollo's spread business and thin capital margins
Institutional vs. retail investors in a crisis
Market sentiment and the Bear Stearns parallel
The Epstein connection and the $158 million payment
Tax liabilities and the drafting error with Epstein
The end of the Epstein-Black relationship
The Ganyva affair and the NDA settlement
Motives for Ganyva's public accusations
Leon Black's social life and international parties
Communication failures with Larry Summers
Psychology: Father's suicide and Leon's disgrace
Philanthropy, the Woolworth Mansion, and MoMA
Art collection and the Munch 'The Scream'
Fun numbers: Diesel prices and carnivorous plants
Golf, insider trading, and personal anecdotes
Joint art ownership and closing remarks
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