Early Life
Jeffrey Steven Yass was born in July 1958 in Queens, New York City, to a middle-class Jewish family. His father, Gerald Yass, was an accountant. Jeff attended public schools in Queens and graduated from Bayside High School in 1975. He then pursued a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics and economics at Binghamton University.
Rise to Success
In the 1970s, while at Binghamton University, Yass co-founded Susquehanna International Group (SIG) with five friends. Initially, SIG focused on options trading on the Philadelphia Stock Exchange. Yass's early experiences included professional gambling, where he honed his skills in probability and risk assessment. Under his leadership, SIG grew into a major player in options trading and market-making, applying quantitative skills to various financial instruments. The firm's success was also attributed to its innovative training methods, including using poker tournaments to sharpen traders' decision-making abilities. Yass's early success included making $1 million before the age of 30.
Key Business Strategies
SIG's key strategies included hardcore risk management and adapting to changing market conditions. The company expanded its portfolio through strategic investments in various private companies globally. A significant investment in ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, became a substantial part of Yass's net worth. SIG has also been involved in venture capital, trading convertible bonds, and other financial instruments.
Philanthropy
Jeff Yass and his wife, Janine, are actively involved in philanthropy, particularly in supporting school choice initiatives. They founded the Yass Prize, which supports innovative, non-traditional education models. In November 2025, Yass donated $100 million to the University of Austin, a tuition-free institution focused on free speech.
