George Roberts – Billionaire

George Roberts is cofounder and co-CEO of private equity giant KKR & Co. and a pioneer in the leveraged buyout business. Along with his cousin and former Bear Sterns colleague Henry Kravis and their mentor Jerome Kohlberg, the three led KKR through a series of debt-financed hostile takeovers starting in the 1970s, the most notable of which was the firm’s highly publicized 1988 buyout of RJR Nabisco, chronicled in the book “Barbarians At The Gate. ” Kohlberg left the firm a year before the completion of the deal– reportedly over concerns about the firm’s preference for large-scale takeovers. A trailblazer away from the Street as well, Roberts has also helped create the concept of venture philanthropy. His nonprofit, REDF, invests in companies that train and provide jobs for the disadvantaged; thus far, he’s funded over 50 social enterprises that have altogether employed more than 11,000 people and generated more than $163 million in revenue.

Source:forbes