Mega Edition: Marc Rowan And Leon Black Outmaneuver Josh Harris To Keep Control At Apollo (6/30/26)

Summary

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Podcast Summary: "Mega Edition: Marc Rowan And Leon Black Outmaneuver Josh Harris To Keep Control At Apollo"

Podcast: The Epstein Chronicles
Host: Bobby Capucci
Date: June 30, 2026
Episode Theme:
This episode dissects the ongoing boardroom power struggle at Apollo Global Management, focusing specifically on the influence of founders Leon Black and Marc Rowan, and the ousting of Josh Harris. Capucci covers the broader implications for Wall Street, Apollo’s reputation, and tangential connections to Jeffrey Epstein, while inserting his signature irreverence and skepticism about the billionaire class.

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Main Discussion Points and Insights

1. Apollo’s Boardroom Power Struggle: Background and Key Players

• Founders: Leon Black, Marc Rowan, and Josh Harris have long dominated Apollo Global. Tensions have escalated into a public power struggle, with Harris being pushed out by Black and Rowan.
• Infighting: There were rumors and warnings (from Capucci’s sources) for months about a looming showdown in Apollo’s boardroom ([00:29]).
• Pressure to Keep it Quiet: For the sake of investor confidence, Apollo’s top brass attempted to keep these feuds under wraps ([01:30]).

2. The Fall of Josh Harris

• Sideline Moves: Despite being the youngest and most ambitious, Harris ends up increasingly marginalized in the company, leading to speculation he will leave Apollo ([03:17]).
• Power Dynamics: Publicly, Harris supported making Rowan CEO, but privately was unhappy with his diminishing influence ([04:48]).
• Employee Sentiment: Employees privately celebrated Harris’s marginalization, humorously humming “Ding dong, the witch is dead” ([09:55]).
• Host’s Cynicism: Capucci mocks the “struggles” of wealthy Wall Street insiders:

  “Shut up as you go and cash that 10 million dollar check. Nobody cares, alright?”
  (Capucci, [10:30])

3. Leon Black’s Shadow Influence

• Backroom Dealmaking: Despite supposedly stepping back, Black is still portrayed as pulling strings from behind the scenes ([02:50], [14:08]).
• Continued Fallout: Black’s reputation remains damaged due to his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein and sexual misconduct allegations, yet he still plays a critical role in steering Apollo ([14:17], [15:25]).
• Orchestrating Transitions: Black persuades Rowan, who had planned semi-retirement, to take over rather than Harris, raising suspicions about true motivations ([15:59]).

4. Risks and Stakes for Apollo

• Key Man Issue: Harris, Rowan, and Black are “key men” for Apollo’s flagship fund; the exit of two could disrupt investments and shake investor confidence ([17:35]).
• Board Changes: Black seeks to eliminate the executive committee and bring more independent oversight, in an attempt to diversify power on the board ([18:14]).
• Soft Coup: Harris is being quietly and systematically cut out of transaction and compensation decisions ([19:38]).

5. Historical Context

• The Drexel Burnham Lambert Connection: The founders’ shared background at scandal-ridden Drexel is highlighted as a shadow hanging over Apollo’s business ethics ([21:35]).
• Harris’s Track Record: Harris is credited for Apollo’s most lucrative deals, notably the rescue of LyondellBasell during the 2008 financial crisis, but Capucci isn’t impressed by any billionaire’s “good guy” credentials ([22:25]).

6. Broader Wall Street Ego and Succession Battles

• Succession handovers in private equity are always turbulent due to outsized egos. Apollo’s infighting is compared to “the Roman Senate” and “a knife fight in the boardroom” ([07:25], [13:54]).
• Recent similar disruptions at The Carlyle Group are cited as precedents ([13:54]).

7. Apollo, Leon Black, and the Twitter Takeover

• Potential Buyout Role: Apollo reportedly considers backing Elon Musk (or another party) in a bid to buy Twitter, rekindling attention on Black’s links to Epstein ([27:13]-[33:25]).
• Public Outrage: Capucci scoffs at media and public focus on which billionaire will control Twitter, arguing all options are equally bad for the public ([33:25]; [39:22]):

  "Who owns Twitter is not affecting my life one way or the other. I have real problems... but the second you name someone like Leon Black as a possible investor, you better damn well believe me... I’ll have a few things to say."
  (Capucci, [45:20])

• Epstein Ties Debunked: Capucci repeatedly corrects media reports that Black only paid Epstein $50 million, clarifying it was $158 million ([28:42], [33:00]).

8. Cynicism Toward Billionaires and Wall Street Institutions

• Capucci uses sarcasm and irreverent humor to frame all the principal actors in a negative light, seeing little moral difference between them ([09:55], [24:30], [39:22]).
• On Virtue Signaling and Hypocrisy:

  "Remember, they all abandoned you... When Covid was breaking, where’d they all go? The Hamptons, their compounds. Bought up all the masks. Screw you plebes."
  (Financial Analyst/Commentator, [23:53])

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Billionaire Suffering:
  “All of you investors and hedges, Aww, your boss is mean to you. Shut up as you go and cash that 10 million dollar check. Nobody cares.”
  — Bobby Capucci ([10:23]-[10:30])

• On Apollo’s “Key Man” Problem:
  “That status, insiders acknowledge, gives Harris leverage in deciding what role he continues to play at the company. 100% right. That’s his ace in the hole.”
  — Financial Analyst ([17:35])

• Mocking Wall Street “Alpha Dogs”:
  “Nobody’s rolling over and showing you their belly at this level of power. If you want to be in charge... you better take that power.”
  — Financial Analyst/Commentator ([14:04])

• On the Drexel-Phoenix of Apollo:
  “They all came from Drexel Burnham Lambert, which fell apart because of scandals and, you know, money laundering and all the other great fantastic things we talk about...”
  — Financial Analyst ([21:36])

• Billionaire Hypocrisy During Covid:
  “Remember, they all abandoned you. You know, the plebes. When Covid was breaking, where’d they all go? The Hamptons...”
  — Financial Analyst ([23:53])

• On Black’s Leadership and Misconduct:
  “Yeah, right, health issues. More like your own sexual assault charges... That’s more like it.”
  — Financial Analyst ([15:32])

• On Twitter, Billionaires & Boredom:
  “Twitter’s not a real place... For me especially, I find it laughable to watch the way people act about Twitter...”
  — Bobby Capucci ([31:07])

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Key Timestamps

• [00:29] – Power struggle inside Apollo detailed, Black vs. Harris vs. Rowan
• [03:17] – Harris’s declining involvement and prospects for leaving Apollo
• [09:55] – Employees mock Harris’s demise; Capucci’s sarcastic commentary
• [13:54] – Wall Street succession egos and parallels to Roman Senate
• [14:17] – Black’s role in making Rowan CEO; Black’s Epstein-related scrutiny
• [17:35] – Explanation of the “key man” dynamic in Apollo’s flagship fund
• [19:38] – Harris increasingly cut out of day-to-day Apollo business
• [21:36] – Drexel Burnham Lambert origins and Apollo’s ethics
• [27:13] – Leon Black reappears in the conversation as Apollo weighs in on the Twitter buyout, discussion of public pension fallout over Epstein ties
• [31:07] – Capucci’s mockery of Twitter culture and billionaire “players”
• [39:22] – Twitter board’s poison pill, Capucci’s cynicism about all contenders
• [45:20] – Capucci’s irreverent sign-off: “My beard and my big mouth will have a few things to say.”

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Overall Tone and Style

Capucci maintains a brash, irreverent, and skeptical tone throughout, painting all Wall Street players (and would-be Twitter owners) as cut from the same Machiavellian cloth. He offers both insider commentary and wry detachment, frequently reminding listeners that public infighting at Apollo is ultimately symptomatic of a deeper, ongoing culture of greed and corruption.

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Episode Takeaway

The boardroom war at Apollo isn’t just a clash of egos—it signals deeper instability in one of Wall Street’s biggest firms, compounded by the shadow of ties to Jeffrey Epstein. While the financial and reputational fallout is ongoing, Capucci sees little difference in outcomes for ordinary people, given the insulated world of billionaires waging private battles for public assets. As Apollo wades into Twitter’s ownership drama, Capucci says: Don’t expect ethical improvement no matter who wins—especially with Leon Black’s ghost still in the room.

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Links and further reading mentioned in the episode are available in the podcast description.

Transcript

[Bobby Capucci]

We the ones still showing up holding hands when time to touch.

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[Financial Analyst/Commentator]

Sponsored by Bigger Picture U.S. this morning, we're gonna dive right back into the Leon Black topic. From the very beginning of this whole entire ordeal with Leon Black, I told you that inside of the boardroom there was a major power struggle underway between Josh Smith and Leon Black. Well, today in Crain's New York, they're going into a bit of detail about what is going on behind the scenes. Now, you know me, I'm not one of these people that runs around talking about, oh, I have sources everywhere, because I don't. But when it comes to the financial world and it comes to Wall Street, I happen to have a few former colleagues who I still keep in contact with who have their ear to the ground and who told me that this was coming. And I relayed that to you folks as well. There was no way that someone like Josh Smith was going to be sidelined by these guys and there wasn't going to be some sort of boardroom brouhaha kicked into gear because Smith isn't some sort of, you know, meek, go quietly into the night kind of cat, right? We're talking about sharks in the water and all of these guys are, you know, alpha predators. I mean, when we talk about gray characters and no good guys, we're certainly talking about the financial world. But my former colleagues, friends of mine, acquaintances, said that there was serious issues going on at Apollo in that boardroom and that there was a huge, huge power struggle going on behind the scenes. Even if there was, the investors and the employees said otherwise because they don't want that kind of struggle blasted all over the world, Right? They don't want that publicized. So their investors get shook. We're talking about billions and billions and billions of dollars in investments, folks. The last thing you want to do is look like you're inconsistent when it comes to management. So they tried to keep this under wraps. They tried to keep everything under on the hush hush, right? No way. When you have a company as big as Apollo and They have such a market share. Well, things get out, right? You can't keep the, the ship airtight. So there was rumors of this for several months now and even longer that Josh Smith was angling to get rid of Leon Black. And it looks like during the power struggle, even though Black has had to step back and resign his positions and stuff, it looks like Leon Black came out on top here, folks, because Smith had to end up taking a back seat. Right? So once again, Leon Black, even from behind the scenes, still seems to be pulling the strings. And this infighting, this, this battle within the boardroom, I honestly don't think it's going to end anytime soon. Josh, Josh Smith is not the pack it up and go home kind of guy, folks. So from what I'm hearing and from what we know, as far as what's been reported publicly, it certainly looks like this whole entire Apollo Global situation and the nuclear fallout that's hanging over Apollo and Leon Black isn't going anywhere anytime soon. So today we have an article from Crain's New York headline, A Brawl between Billionaire Founders at Apollo Sidelines one of its own. So this article was originally published in, in Bloomberg. So it was being, it's being rerun here on, on Cranes. So originally published to Bloomberg, being rerun here on Cranes. All right, so this article was authored by Sabrina Wilmer, Heather Pearlberg and Sridhar Natarajan. And it originally appeared in Bloomberg three months after Josh Harris made his failed pitch to take Leon Black's Crown atop a $455 billion investing juggernaut. Black's chosen heir is in charge and Harris is on the outs. And we, you know, we've been talking about this, right? How with a power struggle like this and the egos that we're dealing with, there was no way that Harris was just going to sit down and accept being shoved out. The youngest of the three, a guy that is very vibrant, very active, owns sports teams, shit like that, right? Super alpha male. There was no way he was going to just be pushed to the side and there wasn't going to be any sort of clapback from him. And we talked about this months ago when all of this was first breaking. The behind the scenes drama between Apollo Global Management Inc's billionaire co founders keeps brewing with ramifications for investors as the company reconfigures its governance this year. Yeah, look, this is certainly factual. According to my sources and the people I've talked to and the people I know that are on the ground in the financial district, 100% there is a huge battle brewing. A huge battle brewing. Publicly, Harris has endorsed the decision to elevate co founder Mark Rowan to chief executive officer. Privately, he's being sidelined, even as he remains a key man in Apollo's flagship fund, meaning investments could stall without him. And that is factual as well. Smith is a huge, huge part of the, the flagship fund, meaning their, their biggest fund. You know, where a big majority of their money comes from. That's all Harris. And with this infighting, the people who are really going to suffer are going to be the investors eventually. Because how long is confidence going to stand at a level where Apollo's considered a juggernaut? If there's all of this infighting, there's all of this instability, you still have Leon Black trying to pull the strings from the shadows. Why would anyone want to invest billions of dollars with this company? People close to the company speaking on the condition they not be identified, said Harris has relinquished day to day handling of operations. He's less involved in deal making than before, with underlings generally seeking his sign off for only the largest transact outside Apollo. He's been shopping for a house in Florida to potentially serve as his primary residence, which would lower his tax bill if he starts to draw down the wealth he's amassed at the company. So the writing's on the wall, right? Certainly looks like Josh Smith is going to be making an exit from Apollo Global. That's huge news, folks, in the financial world and it'll send shockwaves again. Apollo Global has always been this three headed monster of Rowan, Smith and Black, and they all complemented each other well as far as business goes, right? But now you see that starting to fracture and you see, you know, people taking sides and, you know, factions being formed, and it's almost like what you would see in the Roman Senate back in the day, right? You had, you know, Mark Anthony, you had Pompey, you had Caesar, wasn't going to work, right? You can't have all of those egos. Eventually someone's going to have to come out on top. And if that means the proverbial knife fight in the boardroom, then so be it. That's what these people will engage in, folks. We're talking about billions and billions of dollars. Those amount to stark changes for Harris, 56, who for three decades has been known for working marathon hours and making his presence known throughout the New York based private equity firm, running operations and pressing employees on the details of their deals. And you could see that he's checked out, right? He goes from being involved in all of these decisions and deals being made by his employees in his division, to taking a step back and letting his underling things take the wheel. And that's when you know somebody like this is checking out. Because people like this remember. How many times do we talk about this part of it, right? People in power like this never cede power on their own. It has to be taken from them. And Smith, it certainly looks like he's mapping his exit. His decreased involvement has come with a sense of relief for some. When the topic arose recently, employees under Harris were heard humming their response. Ding dong, the witch is dead from the wizard of Oz. Aw, isn't that cute?

[Bobby Capucci]

All of these stockbrokers have such a rough life. All of you investors and hedges, Aww, your boss is mean to you.

[Financial Analyst/Commentator]

Shut up as you go and cash that 10 million dollar check. Nobody cares, alright? Nobody cares. I certainly don't have any empathy for these people. They're being compensated quite fairly. Insiders privately predict Harris will formally take a more limited role or even leave in the coming year or so, devoting more time to outside business interests that include a stable of professional sports franchises. And we talked about this as well. Harris has all of these different options, right? He's a younger guy, 56 years old, still has his whole life ahead of him, pretty much. Why even bother dealing with your idiot moron colleagues at Apollo when you can just cash out and ride off into the sunset? And if I was Smith, that's what I would do. I would leave Apollo holding the bag. I'd cash out all of my assets. I'd move my happy ass to a place with no state income tax, like Florida, or might I suggest the beautiful state of Nevada. And that'll be a wrap. I'd be done with it. When you have that kind of money, you write your own story, folks. That's why it always cracks me up when you find these billionaires that are in these sorts of situations and they're whining about it. Bitch. You have enough money to build a rocket ship and leave the planet. You can leave whatever job you're at, whatever company you're at, and kick your feet up for the rest of your life with all the money you've already made. A spokesman for Harris declined to comment for this article, referring to a statement Harris issued in January when Apollo announced plans to eventually make Rowan, 58, CEO. Harris said he would help expand the search for investor returns, develop the company's platform, and continue working with limited partners and investors. We knew that was BS at the time, we knew that it was lip service, right? Harris just trying to make things smooth and not have the appearance of there being any of friction in the boardroom. But it never settled, right? It was never a situation where you looked at it and you're like, oh, yeah, he's just gonna accept this. At least I didn't. I knew that Smith wasn't just going to sit back and accept being absolutely railroaded by these guys. Nudging Black.

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[Financial Analyst/Commentator]

Many of the private equities world's most successful firms are in the midst of trying to pass power from founding CEOs to new teams, hoping not to alarm investors concerned about maintaining historic returns. It's a process that's proved fraught as executives ambitions derail efforts to replicate the original chemistry. At Carlyle Group Inc. For example, an attempt to hand the reins to co chiefs and Koo Song Lee and Glenn Youngkin ended with Lee taking sole control last year and Youngkin gone, eventually running for governor of Virginia. And that's what it all comes down to, right, guys? Come on, let's be real. Ego, ego, ego, ego and clashes of personality. When you have alpha dogs like this, they don't want to take a secondary role. Nobody's rolling over and showing you their belly at this level of power. If you want to be in charge of the package, you better take that power. And that's what we see here. Rowan and Black end around on Smith and pull the old Okie dokie on him. But at the famous, famously bare knuckled Apollo, the process was all the more rapid and tumultuous. Black, long synonymous with its public image, faced mounting scrutiny through 2020 over his private business dealings with Jeffrey Epstein, the notorious sex offender who killed himself allegedly in jail. In January, a board review found Black had paid $158 million to Epstein for services including tax advice and estate planning. And we know that's not just it. We know that he's also facing his own allegations of sexual impropriety. What, we're just going to forget about that? That doesn't, that doesn't add up. I mean, come on. I hate when they omit things from these articles. Lies of omission, folks, are still lies. Harrison spent years positioning himself, becoming a more public face of the company at conferences and in the media, setting the stage to potentially become CEO. As the review of Black wrapped up, Harris privately expressed concern about the reputational toll the Epstein news could take on Apollo and advocated that Black step down as CEO. But Black surprised insiders in January by persuading Rowan to accept the post mere months after Rowan had announced he was going on semi sabbatical. And remember when that all first broke, how funky we said it was. You have a guy that's basically retired in Rowan who gets the reins when you have an active participant already in Smith who is very hands on, but you pass him up for the semi retard. I mean, semi retired executive. Why not the young, vibrant man? So again, you see Leon Black's fingerprints all over the blueprint of this. Rowan has since tightened his grip, taking over in March when Black, 69, sped up the handoff, citing health issues. Yeah, right, health issues. More like your own sexual assault charges or sexual allegations. And your relationship with Epstein. That's more like it. Your health issues, please. Reducing Harris role is far from simple. He's listed as a key man alongside Black and Rowan for the record setting $24.7 billion fund raised in 2017. The loss of any two of them could potentially prevent the vehicle from making new investments until customers sign off. That, status, insiders acknowledge, gives Harris leverage in deciding what role he continues to play at the company. 100% right. That's his ace in the hole. He has that ace in the hole knowing that the instability that it would cause for him and Black to leave

[Bobby Capucci]

is almost too much to bear. So they, at the very least, they

[Financial Analyst/Commentator]

have to play ball with him. But on other fronts, he's losing ground. Harris is still a member of the executive committee to which the board has delegated certain authorities. In late January, Black announced plans to eliminate the panel. The company has said it will improve governance by reshaping the board where Harris has a seat so that two thirds of its members are independent. And I think that's a good thing, right? Diversify the board. Bring in some independent folk. We don't need just the three top dogs there, right? Harris, Rowan, and Black making all those decisions. Not in a company like this. I mean, obviously it didn't work out for them too well. No oversight running around like they run the world. Sure didn't work out so well for Black, did it?

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[Financial Analyst/Commentator]

While Harris still sits on meetings of the Private Equity Investment Committee and takes part in related discussions on strategy, dealmakers are involving him less when arranging transactions, according to the people. Since handing off control of the firm's budget, his role in compensation decisions has diminished too. Aside from weighing in on the most significant questions, the people said. So basically they've cut Harris off at the legs, right? They're trying to just have him involved in the most important decisions and they're not really keeping him in the loop. So what they're trying to do here, folks, is it's basically a soft coup in the boardroom. They're trying to force him out, but do it quietly, make it uncomfortable, make it to a situation where he just feels like it's not even worth it anymore. But I think they're cutting off their nose despite their face here. And I think once again it's Leon Black's fingerprints all over this. He probably has a gripe with Smith now, right? How dare you come out and speak against me, Josh Smith. I'm Leon Blaaaaaaaaaaaaaack. You know what I mean? Probably all pissed off about that and has an axe to grind. So I would not be shocked for a minute if Leon Black's people were not sowing seeds of discontent. In recent months, Apollo took the step of updating his executive biography on its website, deleting a significant Harris today runs the day to day business of the firm. So again, the writing is on the wall, right? They're pretty much letting Harris know that they want him gone. But Harris being the alpha predator that he is as far as, you know, business goes, he's not going to take that standing down. What the T. Rex seeds its hunting ground to another T Rex or does it fight for it? Well, you better think and better expect that Smith is not going to go out meekly house hunting. Harris graduated from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School in 1986, two years behind Rowan. They soon ended up working as dealmakers at Drexel Burnham Lambert. When the junk bond powerhouse collapsed in a scandal, Black brought the Paralong to found Apollo with a few others in 1990. So they all came from Drexel Burnham Lambert, which fell apart because of scandals and, you know, money laundering and all the other great fantastic things we talk about on a regular basis. And he brought those people over to his new firm. Apollo's all on the up and up, though they didn't learn anything when they were at the heels over at Drexel. Nah, nothing. Over the decades, Harris played a hand in some of Apollo's most successful bets. In 2008, he led a $2 billion investment in failing Dutch chemicals maker Lyndell Bassel Industries, on which Apollo eventually reaped a windfall as the company was restructured. Look, there's no doubt Harris is a great businessman. No doubt about it. As far as being a good human being, though, I highly doubt it. When it comes to all of these billionaires, the whole billionaire class seems to be disgusting in my opinion. And usually I'm not the kind of person that's just like, oh yeah, all these people are sick. But that group of people has to prove that they're not sick. At this point, the Bloomberg Billionaires index indicates his wealth is 6.6 billion. Some of that is at Harris Family Office, HRS Management, which has pumped money into health clubs and a Spanish airline and helped to manage Harris holdings in sports teams. Harris Blitzer Sports and Entertainment set up with Blackstone Groups Inc. David Blitzer owns stakes in the Philadelphia 76ers, New Jersey Devils, and English soccer club Crystal Palace. Eh, Harris better spend some more time with the Devils because that team straight up sucks. Harris and his family, who live in

[Bobby Capucci]

New York, have been renting a home

[Financial Analyst/Commentator]

in south Florida since COVID 19. Infections worsened in last year's second half, according to people familiar with the matter. He's been considering moving his primary residence there and viewing properties. The people said. Must be nice to have that kind of money, huh? Just run away from the pandemic like all the people in New York did. All of the rich people, the virtue signaling, people telling everybody else how to live. Remember, they all abandoned you. You know, the plebes. When Covid was breaking, where'd they all go? To the Hamptons, to their compounds? Bought up all the masks. Screw you plebes. Remember that when they virtue signal and they get on their soapbox. Folks. Apollo has since been considering additional offices in Miami and West Palm Beach. But for Harris, establishing residency in his state with no income tax would save a lot of money if he were start on to start unwinding his financial ties to Apollo. Folks, this is just heating up. And like I said earlier, I highly doubt that Smith is going anywhere without a fight. So Leon Black better bring a lunchbox. Better have his big boy pants on because the brouhaha and the donnybrook that's starting in the boardroom at Apollo is just catching fire. If you'd like to contact me, you can do that@bobby capuchirotonmail.com that's B O B B U I C A P U C c [e-mail] youm can also find me on Twitter Obby Capuci.

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[Bobby Capucci]

Ye vacada projekto al siente niver.

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[Financial Analyst/Commentator]

All of the links that go with this episode can be found in the description box. And to those of you who have donated.

[Bobby Capucci]

What's up everyone, and welcome back to the Epstein Chronicles. So there has been a huge, gigantic disturbance in the force because Elon Musk wants to buy Twitter. Well, Elon Musk isn't the only person who's involved in this fray now. And reports are now coming out saying that Apollo Global, well, they might get involved as well. And whenever Apollo Global gets involved in something, that means Leon Black's involved as well. Now, I don't want to hear, oh, well, he's not on the board anymore. You know how much stock this guy still has in the company. Miss me with all of that? We've talked about it a lot here on this podcast. How Leon Black is still, in my opinion, anyway, the man over at Apollo. So when you hear about this, you just gotta shake your head. How many more scumbags can we have involved in trying to purchase Twitter? You got Bin Talal right now from Saudi Arabia, who it looks like doesn't even own any shares anymore, getting up there waxing poetic as if anyone listens to anything he has to say, especially since 2017 when he was arrested by MBS. Everything that dude says now might be his mouth moving, but it's MBS's words coming out. So I really don't take anything Bin Talal has to say seriously, to be honest with you. But when you have people like Apollo, Apollo Global throwing Their name in the hat and them getting involved. Well, you know, look, these are the people that have the capital to make something like this go down. As you all know, Apollo Global is one of the most gigantic hedge funds. These guys are some of the biggest power players in the business. And when they start throwing their name into the ring here, it's going to probably sway things one way or the other, depending who they back. So let's dive into this article from the Daily Mail and let's see just what's going on here. Headline. A New York based private equity giant, Apollo Global Management, who's ousted founder Leon Black, allegedly allegedly had business links to Jeffrey Epstein, holds talks over backing deal to buy Twitter. Breaking news. Okay, there was no alleged ties. All right? He gave Jeffrey Epstein $158 million. He said it himself. What do you mean alleged? The author of this article is James Gant. A New York based private equity giant whose founder allegedly had links to Jeffrey Epstein has held talks over backing a deal to buy Twitter. Reports say Apollo Global Management bosses have discussed supporting an offer to purchase the social media giant with equity or debt. Insiders claim the firm whose ousted founder Leon Black allegedly had work ties to Epstein may firm up Elon Musk's 43 million dollar bid or help another buyer. They said work ties. That's all it was, was work ties, huh? Yeah, that's it. They just had work ties. They were pals. They saw each other at the. At the employee dining room every once in a while. Give me a break, okay? They were boys locked in. Homies. $158 million for advice. Give me a break. It comes as the billionaire and wealthy firms circle Twitter amid expectation it could be sold. The Tesla founder is joined by private equity firm Thomas Thoma Bravo LP and Wall street heavyweights such as Morgan Stanley in reportedly showing an interest. So, you know, when all of these scumbag rulers of the universe are getting involved, it's just laughable that people are so upset about Elon Musk. Like all these people are billionaires. So one billionaire is different from the other. Shouldn't you be mad at Bin Talal? And the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has control over Twitter. That's not very comforting. Now as. As far as I'm concerned, I don't really care who owns Twitter. The same people who own it now can keep it. Elon Musk can buy it. Bin Talal can buy it, whatever. Because Twitter's not a real place. And for me especially, I. I find it laughable to watch the way people act about Twitter, like it's this, you know, the be all, end all. It's just a place where adults go and think it's okay to argue with strangers because there's no repercussions. Oh, you're going to get banned. Go try that shit in the bar. Go and yap off in the bar to somebody the way these people yap off to each other on Twitter. And let's see how it ends up. Sources told the Wall Street Journal bosses at Apollo Global Management had been in talks about weighing into the Twitter fiasco, but they were unsure of who the private equity firm would back, whether they would help Musk or support another backer.

[Financial Analyst/Commentator]

Good question.

[Bobby Capucci]

And I don't know. But when this article came out a little bit ago, I did reach out to some people that I know in the financial sector to see if they could guide us, see if they know a little bit better than we do what the scuttlebutt might be. But when you're talking about Apollo Global, they're gonna go with whoever they think is going to increase the. The value the most. And my guess would be that would have to be the, the. The Elon Musk, right, Considering who he is and what he's done with Tesla. So I don't know which way they're going to go as far as their backing, but whenever there's an opportunity like this, not only to increase their portfolio, but to kind of maybe control the narrative of conversation, you know, that people like this are salivating over that opportunity. Apollo hit headlines in 2020 when one of the largest public pension funds in the US Froze new investments amid Black's alleged business links to Epstein. The Pennsylvania Public School Employees Retirement System halted cooperations after reports emerged Black had paid the financier 50 million since 2008. I mean, is the guy who wrote this article okay? Mr. Gantt, do you need some help on the Jeffrey Epstein case? I can direct you to the podcast, my friend, and you can get all the details and educate yourself. Try 158 million. What do you mean, $50 million? The Pennsylvania Public School Employees Retirement System told FT at the time its investment team had informed Apollo it would not consider any new investments until further notice. And we talked about that at the time. There were several public pensions that were parking their money with Apollo because, look, let's cut all the BS out, right? Let's get rid of the allegations with Epstein and all of that. These guys did make money grow. They know. They know their business of how to grow money, right? No doubt about it. So they had a lot of these public pensions were parked in their hedge

[Financial Analyst/Commentator]

funds and they were growing them at

[Bobby Capucci]

a, a nice clip. But the, the PSers said, Look, we've had enough. We, we can't be involved with this. We're the public school system. Twitter on Monday filed its poison pill plan with the SEC as it cemented its attempt to block Musk from executing the 43 billion dollar hostile takeover. So I look, when, when you're looking at it clinically, the offer that he made was more than fair, especially considering Goldman had the, the stock, the, the futures only going to what, like 34, 35 bucks a share, and he's offering 54 and some change. If I own shares of Twitter, I'd be pretty pissed, Honestly. I'd want that sale to go through because, again, look, I know there's all this crazy talk and, oh, it's me, like, who cares what billionaire owns Twitter? Is that really another reason for everybody to fight? It's hilarious to watch these artificial wedge issues be introduced to the conversation and then to watch the same people every single time, most of them with those dumbass blue checkmarks next to their name, spread the divisiveness. Yeah, let's go and just, you know, divide the people further with more stupid wedge issues. The document says in connection with the adoption of the rights agreement, on April 15, 2022, the Board approved a certificate of designation of rights, preferences and privileges of Series A participating preferred stock. The certificate of designation setting forth the rights, powers and preferences of the preferred stock. The certificate of designation was filed with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware on April 18, 2022. The strategy announced on Friday trigger triggers a dilution of company shares if any shareholder builds up a 15% stake without the board's approval. It's. You know what? This is so goofy and it's so counterproductive. And it's a waste of company assets, it's a waste of company time, and it's certainly a waste of the shareholders time and money. But it does prevent Twitter from accepting Musk's offer or entering negotiations with him or other potential buyers. Yet it will stop the billionaire from putting pressure on the board by buying up ever more shares in the open market. Twitter said its poison pill plan is similar to other plans adopted by publicly held companies in comparable circumstances. No, it's not. Twitter's gonna get the shit suit out of them.

[Financial Analyst/Commentator]

Watch.

[Bobby Capucci]

They're gonna be sued into oblivion over this. You can't poison pill this. Come on, man. It said the rights plan will reduce the likelihood that any entity, person or group gains control of Twitter through open market accumulation without paying all shareholders an appropriate control premium. It means if Musk or any other person or group acquires at least 15% of Twitter's stock, the poison pill will be triggered. Every other shareholder aside from Musk would be allowed to purchase new shares at half the market price, which stood at 45.08 at the closing bell on Thursday. And let's not kid ourselves. The only reason the stock is up is because of this conversation. This this stock was stagnant for how long?

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[Bobby Capucci]

Now it's up. So this whole again, this whole conversation really is just ridiculous to me. And the only reason I'm even talking about it right now is because Leon Black's ass is turning up in the conversation. If it wasn't for him. I don't care about this argument between people on Twitter and, oh, Elon Musk. And I look at. Let me be very clear. I look at all these billionaires the same none of them have my best interest at heart. The flood of half price shares would effectively dilute his ownership stake, making it massively more expensive for him to build up a controlling position. Twitter said its board had voted unanimously in favor of the plan, which will remain in effect until April 14, 2023. Its board is led by chairman Brett Taylor. Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal and co founder Dorsey also hold board seats. Oh, isn't that a great group of guys? Aren't you just so much happier with Brett Taylor, Agrawal and Dorsey controlling Twitter? Honestly, cut out the dumb partisan bullshit and what would the difference really be? Rounding out the board are MasterCard executive Mimi Almiyahoo, private equity investor Egon Durbin, karaoke tycoon Martha Lane Fox, former Google executive Omid Kordostani, Stanford professor Fifi Lee, venture capitalist Patrick Pichet, first Dibs CEO David Rosenblatt, and former banker and diplomat Robert Zolik. Sure sounds like the kind of company and the kind of people who care about you, huh? You think these people sit around and care about the arguments you're having? None of these people care, okay? None of them. Not one of those people really give

[Financial Analyst/Commentator]

a

[Bobby Capucci]

Despite Twitter's latest move, Musk could still defy the board and take over in a proxy fight by voting out the current directors. Though this strategy could take years, Musk previously responded to reports the board was mulling a poison pill plan by tweeting, if the court, the current Twitter board, takes action contrary to shareholder interests, they would be breaching their fiduciary duty. And that's for sure. He's not wrong about that. Their job is to safeguard the investment. If I make an investment in your company and there's a deal where I can have a huge come up on it, you better damn well at least listen to that. That, that deal, that offer, don't just go running around and crying and moaning because of what reason? Because some other billionaire wants to buy the company. Oh, The liability they would thereby assume would be Titanic in scale, he added, apparently referring to potential shareholder lawsuits. Musk sent shockwaves through the tech world on Thursday with an unsolicited bid to buy the company. He said the promotion of freedom of speech on Twitter as a key reason for what he called his best and final offer. I don't believe that for a minute either. Don't get it twisted. I'm not sitting here saying, oh, Elon Musk has got a great guy, another dude who got a picture with Glenn Maxwell, another guy going to these billionaire brunches and not my people Certainly nobody. I'm sitting around and having an argument with my friends about the world's richest person offered 5,420 a share, which value the social media firm at some 43 billion. In a filing with an with the SEC on Thursday. Musk said at a conference hours later that he was not sure he would succeed and and acknowledged the plan B, but refused to elaborate. But he hinted in a filing that a rejection would make him consider selling his shares. Musk last week disclosed a purchase of 73 and a half million shares, or 9.2% of Twitter's common stock, which sent its shares soaring more than 25%. And again, that's what you see with the increase here of the stock. It's because he bought it. So as a shareholder, I would be furious right now that they're even arguing about this. Sell this shit and move on. Let me get paid. The board's rights plan kicks in if a buyer takes 15% or more of Twitter's outstanding common stock in a transition, as in a transaction not approved by the board. Musk said he could technically afford the buyout while offering no information on financing. Well, he is the richest guy in the world. I'm sure he can do whatever the fuck he wants, right? If he wants to buy Twitter, I'm sure he'll figure out a way to do it. But he would likely need to borrow money or part with some of his mountain of Tesla or SpaceX shares. Despite saying he wanted to take the company private, he said the firm would keep up to 2,000 investors, the maximum allowed. Some investors have already spoken out against the proposal, including businessman and Saudi prince. God, I hate this guy. I'm sorry, folks, I don't mean to digress, but I really dislike Bin Talal. He's a smug, arrogant son of a. And when MBS knocked him off his perch, I wasn't sad about it. Now, don't get it twisted. Not a huge fan of NBS either. Another psychopath. But Bin Talal, this dude has some nerve. You're really going to talk about. Yeah, you're being in charge of Twitter or sitting on the boards. Better than insert other billionaire here. Yeah, because Saudi Arabia has such a great track record. Mr. Prince Guy Morningstar Research analysts echoed this saying, while the board will take the Tesla CEO's offer into consideration, we believe the probability of Twitter accepting it is likely below 50%. Well, that's where somebody like Apollo Global will come in. They'll come in with a ton of dough. They'll park their dough here. They'll get a fat share of it and then your favorite place to go and argue with your friends. Twitter. Yeah, that'll be run by one of Jeffrey Epstein's buddies. Won't that be nice? So again, me personally, I really don't care about this argument. Who owns Twitter is not affecting my life one way or the other. I have real problems that I have to deal with, real issues at hand, folks. But the second you name someone like Leon Black as a possible investor, you better damn well believe me. My beard and my big mouth will be there with a few things to say. Alright folks, that's gonna do it for this update. As usual, some more is certainly on the way. And as you all have noticed by now, I'm guessing I dropped the first episode of my new House of the Dragon podcast and you can download that now. All right folks, until later on. I will catch you later. And if you'd like to contact me, you can do that@bobby capuchirotonmail.com that's B O B B Y C A P U C c [e-mail] you can also find me on Twitter at B O B B y underscore C A P U C C I. The link that we discussed can be found in the description box.

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