David Bonderman, co-founder of private equity firm TPG and co-owner of Seattle Kraken, dies at 82
David Bonderman, a lawyer and investor who managed money for one of the wealthiest families in Texas, helped create one of the private equity industry’s giants and pushed to bring professional hockey to Seattle, died Wednesday. He was 82.
Asset management company TPG, of which Bonderman co-founded, the Seattle Kraken, Bonderman’s family and his investment firm Wildcat Capital Management announced his death.
For much of his career, Bonderman kept a low profile in public, rarely giving interviews to news organizations. He focused on corporate acquisitions and other investments, many of which were highly profitable.
Forbes magazine estimated his wealth at $6.5 billion in March 2023.
“David was rarely the loudest person in the room, but often the smartest. He remained humble and once said that his personal strength was: ‘Not knowing much about something, but knowing enough to make a decent decision,'” said a statement from his family and companies. said.
Bonderman was born in Los Angeles on November 27, 1942 and attended the University of Washington and Harvard Law School, graduating in 1966.
After teaching law at Tulane University, he joined the U.S. Department of Justice in the late 1960s and became a partner and expert in corporate and securities law at Arnold in 1971. & Porter, a high-powered law firm in Washington, DC.
In 1983, he went to work for the investment firm Robert M. Bass Group in Fort Worth, Texas. With money from the Bass family, which traced its wealth to the exploits of Texas oil wildcatter Sid Richardson, Bonderman and partner Jim Coulter made several leveraged acquisitions in the 1980s, including a hugely profitable investment in Continental Airlines.
Bonderman and Coulter founded the Texas Pacific Group in 1992. According to its website, the private equity firm now known as TPG manages $239 billion in assets and has invested in sectors including healthcare, technology and business services. The company was a major early investor in short-term rental site Airbnb and music streaming service Spotify.
Bonderman has served on several boards of directors and philanthropic organizations. In 2017, he resigned from Uber’s board after an employee meeting about sexism at the taxi company.
When fellow director Arianna Huffington said data showed that having one woman on the board made it more likely that a second would be added, Bonderman interjected: “What it actually shows is that it’s much more likely is that there is more talk.’ He later apologized.
In politics, Bonderman was a long-time supporter of former Texas Governor and Republican President George W. Bush, but he switched to supporting Democrat John Kerry in the 2004 presidential election. He famously told the Wall Street Journal that Bush “ a very good guy,” but that he had divided the country.
“He’s turning out to be the worst president since Millard Fillmore — and that’s probably an insult to Millard Fillmore,” Bonderman said.
With his wealth from TPG, Bonderman bought a minority stake in the Boston Celtics and was part of the group that owned a majority stake in the Seattle Kraken, an expansion team in the National Hockey League.
Bonderman also threw lavish birthday parties. The Rolling Stones played his 60th birthday party and former Beatle Paul McCartney headlined his 70th birthday party. Both events took place in Las Vegas.
His survivors include five children and three grandchildren.