Ares CEO Charts Firm's Future Amid Market Evolution

In Brief:

Michael Arougheti, CEO of Ares Management, sat down with Bloomberg TV's Sonali Basak in New York to discuss recent leadership changes and market trends. The interview highlighted Ares' appointment of Kipp deVeer and Blair Jacobson as Co-Presidents, part of a broader wave of promotions signaling the firm's commitment to succession planning.

Arougheti offered an optimistic economic outlook despite market fears, expecting "solid fundamental growth" and "persistently high prices in inflation" while predicting interest rates will remain "stable to higher for longer" rather than seeing cuts later this year.

Big Picture Drivers:

• Succession Planning: Promoting longtime colleagues while creating growth pathways for future leaders

• Talent Strategy: Focus on developing and retaining top talent with very low turnover

• Industry Consolidation: Larger firms benefiting from scale advantages in performance and capabilities

• Market Conditions: Stability despite fears, with opportunities in both strong and challenging markets

Key Topics:

• Leadership Changes: Elevation of longtime partners to co-president roles and cascading promotions

• Growth Strategy: Addition of 100+ investment professionals last year with similar growth expected

• Economic Outlook: Confidence about growth despite market anxiety about potential slowdowns

• Market Expansion: Entry into new sectors like sports investing through NFL team ownership

Key Insights:

• Talent Development: Ares has executives running major businesses who started as analysts 20-25 years ago

• Scale Benefits: Larger firms showing improved performance through consolidated capabilities

• Deployment Flexibility: Business model designed to provide liquidity in both good and challenging markets

• Retail Accessibility: Existing vehicles already provide private credit access to retail investors

By The Numbers:

• Talent Growth: Added over 100 investment professionals last year, growing teams by 10%+

• Workforce Scale: Approaching 4,000 employees across the organization

• Historical Growth: 25% growth rate maintained over the past 20+ years

• Retail Vehicles: $10 billion private loan portfolio with daily liquidity for retail investors

Memorable Quotes:

• "I think you win in this game by developing and retaining great talent." - Michael Arougheti

• "We're not seeing the deceleration in growth... our base case coming into the year was that you'd continue to see solid fundamental growth." - Michael Arougheti

The Wrap: 

Ares Management's approach to leadership development, strategic acquisitions, and market expansion illustrates how major private capital firms are positioning themselves in an evolving financial landscape. Arougheti's confidence in continued growth despite market concerns, coupled with the firm's expansion into new asset classes like sports team ownership, demonstrates how private capital is steadily expanding its reach and influence while maintaining performance through scale advantages.