Blackstone Hires Technology Investor David Schwartz as Senior Managing Director for Private Equity

NEW YORK – Blackstone (NYSE: BX) today announced the appointment of David Schwartz, a seasoned technology investor, as a Senior Managing Director in its Private Equity business. Mr. Schwartz will be based in New York and focus on investments in the fast-growing technology and tech-enabled services sectors.

Joe Baratta, Global Head of Private Equity at Blackstone, said: “David brings tremendous experience investing in businesses that are empowering digital transformation, one of our highest-conviction investment themes at Blackstone. We’re excited to welcome him to the Private Equity team as technology continues to play an increasingly important role within our portfolio.”

Martin Brand, Head of North American Private Equity and Global Co-Head of Technology Investing at Blackstone, said: “We are committed to further expanding our robust global technology investment practice as the opportunity set continues to grow. David’s deep expertise across software, services and beyond will enhance our ability to partner with the leading executives and businesses in the space and we are pleased to have him on the Private Equity team.”

Mr. Schwartz added: “I’m thrilled to join the Blackstone Private Equity team. I’m looking forward to leveraging the firm’s scale, global reach and resources to unlock the growth potential within the technology businesses that are reshaping our world.”

Before joining Blackstone, Mr. Schwartz spent nearly 14 years at Harvest Partners, most recently as a Partner, where he launched and led the firm’s software investing vertical. He additionally invested across the business services, energy and franchising sectors during his tenure. Mr. Schwartz began his career in the Investment Banking group at JPMorgan. He earned a bachelor’s degree with distinction from the Ross School of Business at University of Michigan and an MBA from Columbia Business School.

Recent technology and tech-enabled services investments through Blackstone’s Private Equity business include Bumble, the online dating platform where women make the first move; Vungle and Liftoff, leading mobile app marketing platforms; Ancestry, a leading provider of digital family history services; Sphera, a leader in Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) software, data and consulting services; Simpli.fi, a leader in programmatic advertising and agency management software; Ellucian, a leading software provider to universities; Renaissance, a global leader in pre-K–12 educational technology; and International Data Group, a leading market intelligence and data platform for the technology industry.

About Blackstone

Blackstone is the world’s largest alternative investment firm. We seek to create positive economic impact and long-term value for our investors, the companies we invest in, and the communities in which we work. We do this by using extraordinary people and flexible capital to help companies solve problems. Our $881 billion in assets under management include investment vehicles focused on private equity, real estate, public debt and equity, infrastructure, life sciences, growth equity, opportunistic, non-investment grade credit, real assets and secondary funds, all on a global basis. Further information is available at www.blackstone.com. Follow Blackstone on Twitter @Blackstone.

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Mariel Seidman-Gati
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