In May 2021, Harris announced he was stepping down from his day-to-day responsibilities at Apollo after being passed over as CEO for Marc Rowan, with his large personal focus on sport investments also reportedly becoming a source of tension within the company.[16] The position had been made available after Leon Black announced he would be stepping down due to an investigation finding he had paid $158 million to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein between 2012 and 2017 for advice on taxes and estate planning.[17] He stepped down as senior managing director at Apollo in January 2022 and remained on their board of directors until his term ended in October 2022.[16][18] The same year, Black included Harris in a civil Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) lawsuit, alleging that he led a group within Apollo attempting to tarnish his reputation after his ties to Epstein were reported.[19] Harris denied the claims, with federal judge Paul Engelmayer dismissing the suit in June 2022 for lack of evidence.[20] Black would appeal before the dismissal was upheld in March 2023.[21] He founded the alternative asset firm 26North in September 2022, hiring former senior Centerbridge Partners and Goldman Sachs executives.[22][23] The firm held $9.5 billion in assets by the end of 2022.[22]
Harris employs general managers and presidents to operate his teams and venues, with diversity, equity, and inclusion and employee empowerment being promoted within his workplace culture.[8][7][34] Harris also invests heavily in sports science and analytics, with 76ers' president of basketball operations Daryl Morey being a leading proponent of the field.[70][71][72] He was among the first sports owners to announce that part-time staff would continue to be paid for any games canceled due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sports, which saw the NBA and NHL suspend operations for most of 2020.[73] Due to public criticism, Harris would reverse a decision to reduce the salaries of HBSE, 76ers, and Devils employees making under $100,000 by 20% during the hiatus.[73] Harris and Blitzer have also invested in youth sports. In 2023, the pair bought a youth baseball brand founded by MLB hall of famer Cal Ripken Jr. and partnered with snowboarder and Olympic gold medalist Shaun White to acquire Oregon-based sports camp operator We Are Camp for $10 million.[74][75] In 2024, Harris and Blitzer invested $10 million in a 115-acre sports complex located near the Pro Football Hall of Fame.[76]
Harris is Jewish.[70][77] His father Jacob was an orthodontist and his mother Sylvia was a schoolteacher; he has a younger brother named Gabe.[7][78] He married Marjorie Harris (née Rubin) in 1995.[9][79] The couple met while attending Harvard Business School and have three sons and two daughters together; Hannah, Stuart, Thomas, Pierce, and Bridget.[80][81] Harris and fellow Chevy Chase native and businessman Mark Ein have been close friends since elementary school; they later attended Wharton and Harvard together and shared beach houses on Long Island during their time on Wall Street.[2][38]
Harris was inducted into Kappa Beta Phi, a Wall Street fraternity, in 2011.[86] In November 2017, he bought the Dommerich Mansion, a 21,000-square-foot townhouse in the Upper East Side of New York City, for $52 million.[87] In July 2021, he bought a 9,100-square-foot mansion in Miami Beach from Marcelo Claure for $32 million.[88] Harris was included on Sports Business Journal's "Most Influential: Dealmakers & Disrupters" list in 2022.[89] Harris frequently takes private helicopters to attend games. Due to a scheduling error, he once caused the cancellation of a youth soccer match held at Newark's St. Benedict's Preparatory School as the field is sometimes used as a helipad.[90] His net worth was estimated in early 2024 to be $7.9 billion by Forbes and $8.42 billion by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.[91][92] He held $2.54 billion in Apollo shares as of June 2023[update].[93]
Philanthropy
Harris and his wife founded Harris Philanthropies, a nonprofit organization based in New York City, in 2014.[94][95] He established the $5 million Harris Center for Precision Wellness at New York's Icahn Genomics Institute in 2015.[96] Between 2015 and 2020, Harris donated a total of $3.5 million to the Philadelphia Police Athletic League, $648,950 to the Republican Party, and $190,150 to the Democratic Party.[97][98] He has been partnered with After-School All-Stars since 2016, providing a $1 million grant for six schools in Newark, Philadelphia, and Camden.[99] Harris has also supported the University of Pennsylvania with several donations, including $1 million to the Penn Quakers wrestling program,[100] establishing the Harris Family Endowed Scholarship program for undergraduate students from the Washington, D.C. area,[101] and establishing the $10 million Harris Family Alternative Investments program.[100] He has also participated in forums and panels hosted by organizations such as the Milken Institute, the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference, and the Economic Club of Washington, D.C.[102][103][104]
Harris has contributed to socioeconomic programs in Israel through sports, including founding a youth basketball league known as the 48ers and funding a project integrating Ethiopian immigrants.[105] He donated more than $7 million worth of food, medical supplies, and COVID-19-related equipment to several Philadelphia-based groups and organizations by April 2020.[106][107][108][109] HBSE also committed $20 million to fight racial injustice that year, with Harris further donating $2 million to The Bridgespan Group to expand their nonprofit programs in Philadelphia and Camden.[94][110] In 2022, he established the $5 million Harris Family Fund for Sports Management and Alternative Investments program at Harvard Business School,[111] as well as donating to the Reform Alliance,[112] several Philadelphia-area homeless shelters,[113] and mobile cancer clinics to the Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine.[114] The same year, he donated $1 million to Fund for Health, a health inequity collaboration fund by Penn Med and Wharton, with another million to Penn Med to promote student diversity in clinical medicine and biomedical research.[115][116]
^ ab"Notice of Annual Meeting of Shareholders". sec.gov. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. October 1, 2021. p. 7. Archived from the original on July 22, 2023. Retrieved July 22, 2023. Mr. Harris has previously served on the board of directors of Berry Plastics Group Inc., EP Energy Corporation, EPE Acquisition, LLC, CEVA Logistics, Constellium N.V., and LyondellBasell Industries B.V.
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