An outpouring of grief and admiration met the passing of David Bonderman, a billionaire executive who was known for founding private equity firm TPG and, more recently, bringing professional hockey to Seattle.
Bonderman, 82, died Wednesday surrounded by his family. Bondo, as he was affectionately called, launched TPG, which started out as a PE firm, in 1992. Now called a global alternative asset management firm, TPG was known for years for its retail investments that included J.Crew, Neiman Marcus and Fender Musical Instruments. TPG, in the past decade, has gained a reputation for its healthcare and tech investing, including Spotify, Airbnb and Uber. TPG has $239 billion in assets under management
Before he became a famous investor, Bonderman was a successful attorney for Arnold & Porter, winning a landmark insider trading case before the Supreme Court. While working for investor Robert Bass, Bonderman met Jim Coulter, who would go on to be a long-time investing partner, and they famously acquired Continental Airlines in 1992 out of bankruptcy. In 1992, the executives, along with Bill Price, founded TPG and their $66 million investment in Continental ended up making a 10 times profit for the new firm.
“We will miss David terribly, but we’ll honor his legacy by continuing to bring the same creativity and enthusiasm he brought to our work every day,” TPG said in the statement.
Bonderman is considered by some to be one of the founding fathers of private equity, a relatively young sector that is known for buying up companies. Bonderman isn’t the first private equity pioneer to die but his passing is one of the more recent for a major PE firm. Last year, Thomas H. Lee, who founded the firm that bears his name, died of an apparent suicide.
Because this is private equity where returns are everything, it was only fitting that some of Bonderman’s competitors highlighted his prowess with investing. Henry Kravis, who helped launch KKR in 1976 and is now its co-executive chairman, said Bonderman was an intelligent and clever investor, “creating large gains for his investors over many years. A real pioneer in the alternative investment space.”
David Solomon, the CEO of Goldman Sachs, said he met Bonderman in the early 1990s when they worked together on a deal for America West. Solomon said he continued to do business with him through the 1990s and into the early 2000s. “[Bonderman] had extraordinary business judgment, and he built and led an impressive firm. But more than that, he became a great friend and personal mentor of mine. I’ll miss his wise counsel, and on behalf of Goldman Sachs, I extend my condolences to his entire family,” Solomon said in a post on LinkedIn.
Stephen Schwarzman, who co-founded Blackstone in 1985 and is its long-serving CEO, said Bonderman was "one of the one of the most creative and innovative dealmakers since 1990. He had immense curiosity and a boundless energy pioneering new markets around the world. He was a life force in every way.”
Like many private equity executives, Bonderman took to investing in sports teams. He was a long-time owner of a minority stake in the Boston Celtics. More recently, Bonderman reportedly invested $650 million as part of an ownership group that, in 2018, saw the Seattle Kraken become the 32nd team in the NHL.
The Seattle Kraken is currently led by Samantha Holloway, Bonderman’s daughter, who is co-owner and chair of the Kraken executive committee. With Bonderman's passing, Holloway will become the team's NHL governor, a Kraken spokeswoman said.
Jay Inslee, the governor of Washington, said Bonderman was a “talented entrepreneur who gave us all something to cheer for by bringing a professional hockey team to Seattle,” according to a post on X.
“Rest In Peace, Mr. Bonderman. Thank you for bringing NHL hockey to Seattle,” said Vince Dunn, a defenseman for the Kraken, in a post on X. “The impact you've made will never be forgotten and I'm honoured to be a small part of that. Your legacy will be known for more than just your generosity to the community but also as a great man.”
Andy Jassy, the CEO of Amazon.com, also had kind words. Jassy said he met Bonderman a few years ago when the executive was trying to assemble a team to start the Seattle hockey franchise. “He touched a lot of lives in Seattle, and all over the world. I learned from him virtually every time we were together, and have profound respect for him. I will miss you, Bondo. RIP.”
