Blue Owl's Marc Lipschultz - skate to where the puck is going
Alt Goes Mainstream: The Latest on Alternative Investments, WealthTech, & Private Markets
Intro
This chapter explores the remarkable growth of Blue Owl, an alternative asset management firm, which boasts $250 billion in assets. It discusses their successful strategies, partnerships, and the evolution of the industry towards mainstream acceptance.
Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast.
We had a chance to sit down with Blue Owl Co-CEO Marc Lipschultz recently at their Nest Network Summit for RIAs and private banks in Laguna Beach.
It was a perfect setting to discuss Blue Owl’s incredible growth, which has been in part due to its unique and focused partnership with the wealth channel.
Blue Owl is one of the industry’s largest alternative asset managers and has charted an impressive growth path in the nine years since its founding. Blue Owl has scaled to over $250B of AUM and has proven to be one of the top firms at raising capital from the wealth channel.
Marc is a private markets industry veteran who has been instrumental in building not just one, but two of the industry’s biggest players.
He spent over two decades at KKR, serving on the firm’s Management Committee, and as the Global Head of Energy and Infrastructure after joining the firm as one of the first 20 employees. He then partnered with Blackstone GSO Founder Doug Ostrover and Goldman Sachs Partner and Co-Head of Leveraged Finance Craig Packer to co-found Owl Rock Capital Partners, the predecessor firm to Blue Owl’s Credit platform. Owl Rock combined with Dyal Capital Partners to become the publicly traded entity Blue Owl in May 2021 and has since grown to over $250B in AUM and $2.2B in revenue.
Owl Rock and now, Blue Owl’s, flight is emblematic of the evolution of alternative asset managers. Marc and I had a fascinating conversation. We discussed:
- How Blue Owl’s growth highlights trends that have propelled alternative asset management into the mainstream.
- Why scale matters.
- Their focus on private credit, data centers, and digitalization.
- Their focus on private wealth.
- The power of permanent capital.
Thanks Marc for coming on the show to share your wisdom and expertise in private markets.
You can also see a recent Q&A with Marc on AGM here.
A number of the themes discussed by Marc in the podcast and Q&A appear in Blue Owl’s 2025 Market Outlook. You can read Blue Owl’s 2025 Market Outlooks across Credit, Real Estate, and GP Strategic Capital, where their teams outline themes that are top of mind and how it will impact their respective sectors.
Show Notes
00:00 Welcome to the Alt Goes Mainstream Podcast
00:42 Interview with Marc Lipschultz
00:57 Blue Owl's Growth and Success
01:10 Marc's Background and Career
03:20 Marc's Journey at KKR
03:31 The Early Days of Private Markets
05:18 Building Owl Rock and Blue Owl
05:45 Growth at KKR and Blue Owl
06:17 Lessons from KKR
07:21 Serving Investors and Delivering Results
08:29 Operationalizing Culture
09:42 Serving Investors with Excellence
10:04 Focus on the Wealth Channel
10:25 Democratization of Alts
11:54 Building a Firm to Serve Individuals
13:41 Building a Scalable Firm
16:23 Unified Wealth Platform
18:42 Balancing Customization and Scale
23:48 Brand and Trust in Private Markets
26:27 Opportunities in Private Markets
28:38 Acquisition of IPI and Strategic Growth
28:53 The Role of Scale in Private Markets
31:10 Growth and Competition in Private Credit
32:19 Challenges in Moving from Base to High-End Markets
32:30 Meeting the Needs of Large Borrowers
32:38 Market Dynamics and Spread Variations
33:03 High-End Market Realities
33:31 Cost of Capital and Borrowing Limits
34:28 Predictability, Privacy, and Partnership
35:12 Natural Market Boundaries
35:41 Secular Trends in Private Credit
35:43 The One-Stop Shop Concept
36:10 Risk Management in Credit
36:15 Concentration Risks in Credit vs. Equity
37:01 Maintaining Low Loss Rates
37:40 Impact of Capital on Credit Performance
38:25 Durability of Large Companies
39:44 Private Financing Trends
40:28 Strategic Business Orientation
40:52 Growth Trends and Market Focus
41:46 Skating to Where the Puck is Going
46:48 Permanent Capital and Business Strategy
50:19 Building a Purpose-Built Firm
52:51 Lessons from the Washington Commanders and Tampa Bay Lightning
53:15 The Role of Culture in Business and Sports
55:13 Intentionality and Good Fortune
55:52 Commitment to Culture and Values
57:04 People as the Core of Success
57:46 Wrapping Up the Conversation and Closing Remarks
Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant.
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