Early Life
George Rosenberg Roberts was born on September 14, 1943, in Houston, Texas, into a Jewish family. He attended Culver Military Academy, where he received the "Man of the Year" Award in 1998. Roberts then pursued higher education at Claremont McKenna College, graduating in 1966, and later at the University of California, Hastings College of the Law, earning his J.D. in 1969.
Rise to Success
Roberts began his career in the late 1960s at Bear Stearns, quickly becoming a partner at the age of 29. Alongside Jerome Kohlberg and his cousin Henry Kravis, Roberts began engaging in "bootstrap" investments. In 1976, Roberts, along with Kravis and Kohlberg, left Bear Stearns to form Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR). KKR pioneered the leveraged buyout (LBO) strategy. Under their leadership, KKR executed the leveraged buyout of RJR Nabisco in 1988, which was the largest buyout in history at that time, valued at $25 billion. The firm's success has been instrumental in his wealth, with KKR managing approximately $637.6 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2024.
Key Business Strategies
KKR's key strategy involved identifying undervalued companies and using significant leverage to finance acquisitions. This approach allowed KKR to generate substantial returns. Roberts's expertise in deal structuring, financial analysis, and investment management has been critical to KKR's success.
Philanthropy
Roberts is actively involved in philanthropy. He is the founder and Chairman of the board of directors of the Roberts Enterprise Development Fund (REDF), a nonprofit organization in San Francisco that invests in social enterprises to create jobs for people facing big challenges. Additionally, in 2012, he made a $50 million donation to Claremont McKenna College and added an additional $140 million to the institution in 2022.
