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Henry Kravis of KKR
Henry Kravis is the original master of leveraged buyouts and is one of history’s most celebrated financiers. He pioneered the idea of buying billion-dollar-worth companies with borrowed money.
Kohlberg Kravis Roberts KKR, which he co-founded, is virtually the first private equity company. In its heyday in the 1980s, Henry Kravis’ company changed the landscape of Wall Street. KKR inspired similar startups like Blackstone and the Carlyle Group.
Managing $60 billion in assets, KKR has bought and dealt with some of the most recognizable brands in the US like Texaco, Safeway, Playtex, Duracell, etc. Its activities were the subject of such bestselling books as Merchants of Debt and The Money Machine.
Henry Kravis was born in January 1944 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He attended Claremont McKenna College in California and majored in economics. Then he went to Columbia University for his MBA.
With his cousin George R. Roberts, he sought employment in Bear Stearns. They eventually worked under Jerome Kohlberg, Jr., a senior corporate finance manager at the company. Jerome Kohlberg ultimately became their mentor in corporate acquisitions.
Bear Stearns generally cautioned against such projects and in 1976, Kravis, Roberts, and their mentor resigned to found KKR. In time, KKR was averaging $50 million annually, but it wasn’t until 1984 when KKR hit the billion dollar mark, with the takeover of Wometco Enterprises.
The buyout of RJR Nabisco, catapulted KKR to Wall Street legend. For five weeks in 1988, Henry Kravis bid ferociously for ownership of America’s 19th largest corporation, which has interests in tobacco and food. RJR Nabisco has, under its wings, distinctive names like Winston, Camel, Salem, Oreo, Planter’s Peanuts, Del Monte vegetables, and Ritz Crackers.
Worth some $6.5 billion, Henry Kravis is very fond of the arts, donating as much as $10 million to institutions such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the New York City Ballet. A longtime Republican, he supported John McCain’s presidential campaign. He also contributes significantly to the Republican Leadership Council.
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