Marc Rowan addresses Apollo’s succession plan after brush with Trump Cabinet

Marc Rowan

After Apollo CEO Marc Rowan’s whirlwind candidacy for Trump’s Treasury Secretary gig, questions remain about what could become of the firm after Rowan’s eventual exit. After all, he’s the last remaining “cofounder” of the newest member of the S&P 500 (Rowan and former COO Josh Harris were granted cofounder status by former CEO Leon Black around the time the firm went public).

When asked about succession at Wednesday’s Goldman Sachs Financial Services conference, Rowan laid out the private equity giant’s general plan, including the members of his team who could one day succeed him.

“Part of the responsibility that we think we have in stewarding a company is to make sure that everyone has a backup, myself included,” Rowan said before delving into the firm’s stable of senior talent.

He highlighted “two very, very senior partners” in asset management, likely referring to Scott Kleinman and Jim Zelter. As B-17 has previously reported, Wall Street stock analysts view the two Apollo Asset Management copresidents as Rowan’s natural successors. Rowan also mentioned “two very, very senior partners” in the firm’s retirement services business Athene. The heads of that business include Grant Kvalheim, the president of Athene, and Jim Belardi, cofounder, CEO, and CIO of Athene.

But beyond these names, Rowan said there’s “another 10 in asset management and another handful in retirement services” who represent “the next generation” of Apollo executives. He suggested they could soon start playing a more pronounced role in running the company.

“I think you should look to the next 12 months as we will start really pushing forward the next generation and making the transition before we need to,” Rowan said, comparing Apollo’s preparations for the future to those at any large financial firm.

Rowan, the CEO of Apollo since 2021, has been the visionary behind the company’s transformation from a traditional private-equity firm to one that also issues loans and retirement products. The stock is up nearly 275% since he took the helm.

Last month, he was floated as a potential Secretary Treasury under Donald Trump and reportedly flew to Mar-a-Lago to meet with the president-elect, who ultmately tapped hedge fund manager Scott Bessant.

Rowan made the comments just days after Apollo was picked to join the S&P 500 index starting December 23, and its stock traded at all-time highs. Rowan, however, warned against complacency.

“It’s just important to realize all of our industry has been really successful, and people may or tempted to take a breath, take a victory lap,” Rowan said. “Or they can keep trying to win.”

As B-17 has previously reported, Rowan has gone to great lengths to keep his employees on their toes despite the company’s success, including 4 a.m. wakeup calls and bringing in speakers to scare “‘the bejesus out of them.”

“I want to make sure that we have a team that is not tired that wants to win because winning is going to involve changing,” Rowan said on Wednesday. “The shape of our firms is not going to be the same in the next five years.”