Stephen Allen Schwarzman (born February 14, 1947, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is an American billionaire businessman, investor, and philanthropist. He co-founded The Blackstone Group in 1985 with Peter G. Peterson and has served as its Chairman and CEO since inception, growing it into one of the world's largest alternative investment and asset management firms, with over $1.2 trillion in assets under management as of September 2025. His early career included roles at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette and Lehman Brothers, where he became head of global mergers and acquisitions by age 31. A Yale University (BA, 1969) and Harvard Business School (MBA, 1972) graduate, he briefly served in the U.S. Army Reserve. Schwarzman is a major Republican donor and political figure, having chaired President Donald Trump's Strategic and Policy Forum and contributed over $27 million to political campaigns. He signed The Giving Pledge in 2020 and has made substantial philanthropic contributions including $150 million to the University of Oxford, $350 million to Yale University, establishment of the Schwarzman Scholars program at Tsinghua University, and $100 million to the New York Public Library. With an estimated net worth of $43 billion as of May 2025, he maintains influence through board roles at organizations like the Council on Foreign Relations and Asia Society. He is married to intellectual property attorney Christine Hearst Schwarzman and resides in New York City.