Tony Ressler

Net worth over time

Forbes estimates of Tony Ressler's net worth each year, next to the Forbes value of the Atlanta Hawks. From 2015 to now the net worth went from $1.5B to $11.4B, about 8 times as much.

Yearly points are from the Forbes billionaires lists, mostly the spring World's Billionaires list; the last point is the latest Forbes real-time figure, which can differ a lot from the spring list. Years without a published figure are skipped.

The businesses in detail

How the main business makes money. Ares collects money from pension funds, insurers and wealthy investors. It mostly lends that money directly to companies, a business known as private credit. It also buys companies and property. Ares charges a yearly fee on the money it manages and keeps a share of investment profits. Ressler's fortune is mainly his Ares shares, so it moves with the share price.

Biggest deals.

• May 2007: Abu Dhabi Investment Authority took a passive minority stake in Ares.
• 2013: Ares bought Neiman Marcus for $6B.
• January 2017: Ares closed its $3.4B purchase of American Capital.
• October 2024: Ares agreed to buy the international arm of GLP Capital Partners for about $3.7B cash plus $1.9B in stock.
• April 2026: Ares agreed to buy Whitestone REIT for $1.7B in cash.

Career path

1. 1980s

   High-yield bonds at Drexel Burnham Lambert; rises to senior vice president

2. 1990

   Co-founds Apollo Global Management with Leon Black, his brother-in-law, after Drexel collapses

3. 1997

   Co-founds Ares in Los Angeles with John Kissick and Bennett Rosenthal

4. 2005

   Joins Mark Attanasio's group buying the Milwaukee Brewers

5. 2014

   Ares lists in New York in May; his $1.2B Clippers bid loses to the $2B bid of Steve Ballmer

6. 2015

   Hawks deal agreed 22 April and approved by the NBA on 24 June; joins the Forbes 400

7. End of 2017

   Hands the Ares chief executive job to Michael Arougheti

8. 2022

   Ares raises $3.7B for a sports, media and entertainment fund

9. 2025-26

   Ares shares fall 40% from September to March, cutting his net worth by $3.3B from $13.8B

Teams and sports assets

Owns now 4

• teamAtlanta HawksNBA · Basketball · USSince 2015 · 50% (Wikipedia) or 51% (Bloomberg) · $850M including assumed debt, for 100% with arena rights
• arenaState Farm Arena operating rightsNBA · Basketball · USSince 2015 · operator; arena owned by the Atlanta Fulton County Recreation Authority · came with the team; Hawks paid $50M plus overruns toward a $192.5M renovation
• teamMilwaukee BrewersMLB · Baseball · USSince 2005 · minority; Bloomberg credits him with 6%
• sports businessAres Management sports, media and entertainment fund (stakes in Inter Miami, 10% of the Miami Dolphins, Atletico Madrid, San Diego Padres, McLaren Racing)Multiple · USSince 2022 · held by Ares, not personally; he owns about 16% of Ares · $3.7B fund

Other investments and assets

• Companies and funds: Forbes lists him as a holder of Ares Capital Corporation, a lender Ares manages. Ares, not Ressler personally, runs the $3.7B sports fund. It put $150M into Inter Miami in 2021 and bought 10% of the Miami Dolphins in December 2024. It also has interests in Atlético Madrid, the San Diego Padres and McLaren Racing.
• Property: His Centennial Yards partners include Shaquille O'Neal, Grant Hill and Andrew Young.
• Family in the business: His wife, actress Jami Gertz, is listed with him in the Hawks ownership. Son Nick works full time for the Hawks. Brother Richard co-founded CIM.

Giving and politics

• He co-founded the Alliance College-Ready charter schools (26 schools in 2015) and the Painted Turtle camp for seriously ill children.
• He sits on the boards of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
• Gertz-Ressler High Academy, a Los Angeles charter school, carries his and his wife's names.

How they run their teams

• He decides who runs basketball and changes them often. He fired general manager Landry Fields on 21 April 2025 and promoted Onsi Saleh.
• The Hawks finished 40-42 in 2024-25 and missed the playoffs two years running.
• Under him the Hawks built a practice facility and bought a G League team.
• Hoops Rumors noted criticism of his son's influence and of roster moves seen as avoiding luxury tax. Ressler denied both.
• A former finance executive was indicted for wire fraud in late October 2025, accused of taking $3.8M. A Hawks audit found it; no verdict is reported.

What they have said

• He runs businesses from the boardroom: pick managers, set clear goals, and never micromanage people who know more.
• He has the last word on the Hawks, though he first hoped a chief executive could run the team.
• Keeping the roster intact after the conference-finals run was a mistake, and luxury tax does not frighten the club.
• On Centennial Yards, he dismissed worries about inflation and interest rates and said backing minority-owned contractors is good business.
• He sees sports as an investment category for big institutions, worth roughly $2.5-3 trillion.

Little-known facts

• Forbes put him at $1.4B when he bought the Hawks in 2015.
• Ares had about 800 staff and $87B under management in early 2015.
• Original partner Rick Schnall sold his Hawks stake in 2023 and now co-owns the Charlotte Hornets.