Gregg S. Hymowitz | |
|---|---|
| Born | November 16, 1965 |
| Education | |
| Occupation(s) | Businessperson, activist investor, philanthropist |
| Known for | Chairman, CEO, and founder of EnTrust Global |
| Board member of | EnTrust, Purus Marine |
| Spouses | Marcella Guarino Hymowitz
(m. 2013)Debby Hymowitz (div. 2007) |
| Children | 6 |
Gregg S. Hymowitz (born November 16, 1965)[1] is chairman, chief executive officer and founder of EnTrust Global,[2] a diversified alternative investment firm.[3][4]
Hymowitz is from Bellmore, New York.[5] In 1990, he graduated cum laude from Harvard Law School with a JD, and received a BA, Phi Beta Kappa, from the State University of New York at Binghamton in 1987.[6] He was the 1985 Harry S. Truman Scholar from New York, the 1987 British Hansard Society Scholar and the 2004 recipient of the Governor's Committee on Scholastic Achievement Award.[6]
He began his career as an attorney at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom where he focused on mergers and acquisitions before joining Goldman, Sachs & Co. as a vice president in 1992.[1]
In 1997, he left Goldman to establish Entrust Global (originally EnTrust Capital).[1] When founding Entrust, Hymowitz and his colleagues personally handled asset gathering and investment decisions to build a small but strong portfolio.[7] By the end of the year, the firm had over $1.1 billion in assets and was continuing to expand.[8] In 2016, Legg Mason purchased a 65% stake in EnTrust for $400 million, with Hymowitz also retaining a 35% stake.[9] Under Legg Mason, EnTrust was merged with Permal Group, assuming the name of EnTrustPermal.[10] The firm rebranded to EnTrust Global in 2019.[11]
In February 2020, Legg Mason was acquired by Franklin Resources for $4.5 billion. Instead of being incorporated into Franklin Resources as a result of the deal, Hymowitz agreed to reacquire EnTrust by buying back Legg Mason's share of EnTrust.[12][13] Hymowitz later sold a 10% minority stake in EnTrust to the Brunei Sovereign Wealth Fund.[14]
According to Forbes, Hymowitz has a personal net worth of $1.3 billion as of May 2023.[14]
EnTrust Global and GMF Capital formed EG Acquisitions, a blank-check special-purpose acquisition company. EG Acquisitions filed for a $250 million IPO in April 2021.[15] In October 2022, it was announced that EG Acquisitions would merge with private jet company flyExclusive, taking the company public with a combined value of $600 million.[16]
Hymowitz is an activist investor, and has commented on activist investing's potential to help investors identify the best investment opportunities.[17] In 2013, Hymowitz, as head of EnTrust Capital, raised approximately $600 million for funds controlled by shareholder activists.[18] During the COVID-19 crisis of 2020, Hymowitz stated that activist investing, by enabling the investor to have an impact on company decisions, is a good investment strategy for periods of economic dislocation.[19]
In 2018, a large portion of the capital Hudson Executive Capital LP acquired for its stake in Deutsche Bank investment came from Hymowitz's EntrustPermal.[20][21] EnTrust Global has a 25% stake in Alma Capital,[22] and is a co-investor with the US-based activist firm Third Point LLC, with a $650 million stake in Nestlé.[23]
EnTrust Global has also provided capital to Politan Capital Management, through which it invested in healthcare companies Centene Corporation in 2021,[24] and Masimo in 2022.[25]
In 2015, the firm launched Blue Ocean Funds, a maritime lending division.[26][27][28] As of March 2019, they had financed more than fifty vessels with an investment of over a billion dollars in commitments, of which $600 million has been deployed, taking advantage of the lack of bank lenders in the maritime sector.[29][30] In December 2020, EnTrust Global closed a $2.1 billion fundraising for the Blue Ocean Fund.[31] EnTrust Global raised an additional $925 million for the Blue Ocean Fund between April and June 2021,[32] and acquired Maas Capital from Dutch bank ABN Amro.[33]
Hymowitz is also the chairman of Purus Marine,[34] a holding company launched by Entrust in 2021 which invests in environmentally friendly and low-carbon maritime transportation and infrastructure.[35] Purus Marine has received investments from Itochu and First Citizens Bank.[36][37] It provides transport vessels to industries such as offshore wind, transportation, liquefied natural gas and logistics.[38][39] The company had a fleet of over 50 low-carbon vessels in early 2023,[39] and plans to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2030.[40]
Hymowitz serves as Chair of EnTrust Global's Investment Committee, Compensation Committee and Financial & Control Committee, and is a member of the Blue Ocean Executive Committee.[6]
Hymowitz manages Jolli Four, LLC, a real estate firm based in Wellington, Florida. In 2021, the firm sold an estate in Wellington to equestrian Logan Marksbury for $12 million.[41]
Hymowitz has been a panelist on numerous television shows[42] such as Fox News' Cavuto on Business,[43] Bloomberg Television,[44] and CNBC's Squawk Box.[45] Hymowitz has also been involved in political fundraising,[46][47] and was co-chair of the Dick Gephardt 2004 presidential campaign.[48] In 2001, Hymowitz was a speaker to the US House of Representatives during hearings on whether conflicts of interest impacted the research of sell-side analysts.[20]
In 1995, Hymowitz established the Hymowitz Scholarship, which is awarded to full-time undergraduate students of Harpur College.[49] Hymowitz endowed the Hymowitz Professorship of Global Health at Duke University, which was named after him. In 2017, Professor David Boyd became the inaugural holder of the chair.[50]
Hymowitz participated in the FTI Consulting Great Charity Challenge which raised $2.5 million for Florida charities.[51] He has also donated to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society,[52] New York Cares,[53] and The Retreat, a non-profit organization in The Hamptons which provides support to victims of domestic violence.[54]
He was on the committee for the 2017 YAGP "Stars of Today Meet the Stars of Tomorrow Gala",[55] and is part of the New York Leadership Circle for Mikva Challenge, a non-partisan civic engagement organization.[56]
Hymowitz is chairman of EnTrust Global and Purus Marine.[34] He was a member of the Board of Trustees at Montefiore Medical Center and served two terms as a trustee of the Riverdale Country Day School.[6]
Hymowitz was married to Debby Hymowitz, with whom he had three children, until 2007. Hymowitz later married Marcella Guarino Hymowitz in 2013, and they have three children.[57] In 2021, Hymowitz and his wife Marcella purchased five acres of ocean-front property in Parrot Cay from Bruce Willis for $6 million.[58]