Leon David Black is an American billionaire investor and philanthropist who co-founded Apollo Global Management, one of the world's largest alternative asset management firms. Born in New York City to a prominent Jewish family—his father, Eli M. Black, a Polish-Jewish immigrant and corporate executive who died by suicide in 1975 amid a bribery scandal, and his mother, Shirley Lubell, an artist—Black began his career at Drexel Burnham Lambert in the 1970s, working under Michael Milken in the high-yield bond department and eventually becoming head of Mergers & Acquisitions. Following Drexel's bankruptcy in 1990, he co-founded Apollo with Josh Harris and Marc Rowan, pioneering distressed debt and private equity investments. Under his leadership as CEO and chairman, Apollo grew into a financial powerhouse, executing major deals like the acquisition of Caesars Entertainment and Realogy Holdings, with over $785 billion in assets under management. Black stepped down as CEO and resigned from Apollo in 2021 amid controversies, including revelations of payments to Jeffrey Epstein, but remains a significant shareholder and influential figure in finance.

Black is married to Debra Black, with whom he has four children, and resides primarily in New York City with additional properties in Palm Beach, Florida. A major art collector, he has amassed one of the world's most valuable private collections, including works by Picasso, Warhol, Koons, and the 2012 purchase of Edvard Munch's 'The Scream' for $119.9 million, though it has drawn scrutiny for acquisitions linked to questionable sources. Through the Leon Black Family Foundation, he has donated hundreds of millions to causes in education, health (including melanoma research), and the arts, with significant gifts to the Museum of Modern Art (where he served as chairman from 2018 to 2021) and Harvard University, his alma mater.

Black's reputation has been tarnished by associations with Jeffrey Epstein, whom he paid $158 million for tax and estate planning advice between 2012 and 2017, with Epstein's strategies allegedly saving Black $1.3 billion. This led to his resignation from MoMA's board in 2021 and from Apollo. In 2021, he settled a lawsuit with the U.S. Virgin Islands for $62.5 million over Epstein-related claims, denying wrongdoing. He has also faced criticism for Apollo's aggressive investment strategies, personal financial ties to controversial figures, multiple sexual assault lawsuits (denied and some discontinued), and ongoing investigations by the U.S. Senate Finance Committee and revelations from the Epstein files. Despite these issues, his net worth, estimated at around $10 billion, underscores his enduring influence in global finance and philanthropy.