Korean Americans break 'bamboo ceilings' at top PEFs
From left are Carlyle Group CEO Kewsong Lee, KKR co-President Joseph Bae and Blackstone CFO Michael Chae / Courtesy of each company
By Park Jae-hyuk
Since Carlyle Group CEO Kewsong Lee became the sole head of his company this month, following the sudden retirement of co-CEO Glenn Youngkin, Lee and other Korean Americans who have smashed the “bamboo ceiling” at world-leading private equity firms (PEFs) have been drawing attention.
Coined in 2005 by global leadership strategist Jane Hyun, the bamboo ceiling refers to barriers that serve to exclude Asians and Asian Americans from executive positions on the basis of subjective factors, such as a perceived lack of leadership potential and lack of communication skills.
According to industry insiders, it is an open secret that such barriers exist on Wall Street, given that investment banking and deal making rely heavily on networks built by top executives, most of whom are Caucasian men.
Lee and two other Korean Americans ― Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) co-President Joseph Bae and Blackstone chief financial officer (CFO) Michael Chae ― however, have overcome this barrier, raising hopes that Asians will play a major role in the financial sector and the Korean capital market will become more significant.
In particular, Lee became the first Korean American who was named the sole CEO of the U.S. PEF that manages assets worth $221 billion.
Born in 1965 in Albany, New York, he is the son of late Yonsei University professor Lee Hak-jong. After majoring in applied mathematics at Harvard University and graduating from Harvard Business School, Kewsong Lee worked at Goldman Sachs, McKinsey & Company and Warburg Pincus. He joined Carlyle in 2013 and was appointed as co-CEO in 2018.
Under his leadership, Carlyle formed a strategic alliance with KB Financial Group in June and decided to invest 240 billion won ($200 million) in the Korean banking group. His company also joined hands with Shinhan and Hana financial groups to raise a $600 million infrastructure fund.
“Over the past few years, Carlyle has reached many key milestones around our most important priorities and our focus will continue to be on delivering for our investors and emphasizing shareholder friendly actions,” Lee said in a press release.
Bae is another figure who overcame the difficulties that many Asians on Wall Street are facing.
Born in 1969, he moved to the U.S. with his family when he was two years old. After graduating from Harvard, he worked for Goldman and joined KKR in 1996. He became the co-President of his company in 2017.
KKR has also expanded its presence here recently.
It attracted a $200 million investment from Shinhan in January. In addition, the PEF has increased the number of staff at its Seoul office.
According to sources, the office recently hired former Goldman executive director Hue Noh as its client and partner group director. Sources said Josh Lee, who worked for Apax Partners and Kylin Management, also joined the Seoul office as a principal earlier this year. In 2019, the office hired former Macquarie Korea executive Keith Kim and former Mapletree Investments Vice President Daniel Cho.
Chae, the youngest among the three Korean-Americans holding the top positions at the world's largest PEFs, has been tasked with directing Blackstone's investments in the rapidly growing Asian capital market.
He was born in 1972 to parents who moved to the U.S. in the 1950s to study there. After graduating from Harvard, earning a master's in international relations at the University of Cambridge and a doctorate of law at Yale University, he worked as an analyst at Dillon, Read & Co. and later for Carlyle. He joined Blackstone in 1997 and was appointed its CFO in 2015.
His company has continued its investments in Korea, including the takeover of a logistics center in Incheon and the acquisition of a partial stake in Starfield Hanam shopping mall.