Partner, Chief Operating Officer & COO of Asset Management Business, Apollo Global Management
Search every verified Byron Vielehr interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. Byron Vielehr, Partner and Chief Operating Officer of Apollo Global Management, has been involved in the firm's recent activities as discussed by CEO Marc Rowan. Rowan stated at a conference that the U.S. economy has achieved a "soft landing" following interest rate increases, and he expressed confidence that this would continue. He attributed the economy's resilience to factors such as infrastructure investment, reshoring, and defense production, which he said have kept employment strong. Rowan also addressed Apollo's joint bid with Sony Pictures Entertainment for Paramount, describing it as an opportunity to create value in a media industry undergoing change. Rowan commented on broader market trends, noting that most investors lack exposure to private markets and that the industry should create products to provide access to higher returns and diversification. He described a global retirement crisis, citing aging populations and insufficient savings, and pointed to Australia's superannuation funds as a successful model for giving public investors access to private markets. Rowan also criticized campus protests as anti-Semitic and a failure of leadership, while acknowledging the right to protest and free speech.
“I think we've had a soft landing; when rates have gone up 400 basis points and the wheels haven't come off the buses, that's the definition of a soft landing. Will it continue? I think so.”
“Everyone who wants a job has a job, which means it's very hard to dent the economy. Maybe financial markets yes, but the underlying economy is strong.”
“Interest rates always matter, but I'd say it matters almost in reverse. Investors have deceived themselves that they were good investors for the past decade rather than riding an era of very low interest rates.”
“We have fundamental changes in market structure that we have not dealt with as a society yet, especially with the rise of index funds and passive investing.”
“Most investors don't have any exposure to private markets. It's our job as an industry to create products that allow investors to get the benefits of higher returns and diversification.”
“We are worldwide facing a retirement crisis with aging populations, governments doing less, and an era of very low interest rates. People have not saved appropriately for retirement.”
“Australia's superannuation funds have done an amazing job by giving public investors access to private markets under professional supervision, contrasting with the US 401K plans mostly invested in daily liquid mutual funds and ETFs for 50 years.”
“The fight against anti-Semitism is a growth industry. The protests on college campuses are absolutely anti-Semitic, anti-American, and anti-Western. This is a failure of leadership.”
“The vast majority of professors and students get that there is a right to protest and free speech, but there is also a way to take over, cause damage, threaten, and intimidate. This is unacceptable.”
“We are a value-oriented firm and the way value is created today is usually in places undergoing substantial change. Media is undergoing substantial change, and we see opportunities to create value navigating these turbulent times.”
Apollo Global Management (APO) has been in the headlines for its joint bid with Sony Pictures Entertainment (SONY, 6758.
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