Robert F. Smith is the second-richest Black man in America.
Smith follows behind David Steward, the founder of IT management company World Wide Technology, who boasts an $11.4 billion net worth to secure the top spot among Black individuals, Forbes notes.
Smith’s return to the list is a result of his role as founder, chairman, and partner at Vista Equity Partners, a firm that invests in enterprise software, data, and technology companies, per its website.
With more than $100 billion in assets since its inception, its portfolio companies include Forcepoint, Comply, Datto, Brainware, and InfoBlox, among others.
In 2024, Vista Equity Partners made additional billion-dollar moves. This includes joining Blackstone in the acquisition of Smartsheet — an enterprise platform for modern work management — for an all-cash transaction valued at $8.4 billion in September, as AFROTECH™ previously told you.
“Modern enterprises rely on Smartsheet’s simple and scalable solutions to manage a diverse range of business-critical processes every single day because they enable seamless collaboration, enhanced productivity, and faster and more informed decision-making,” commented Monti Saroya, co-head of Vista’s Flagship Fund and senior managing director, and John Stalder, managing director at Vista, in a news release. “We look forward to partnering closely with Blackstone and Smartsheet to support its ambitious goal of making its platform accessible for every organization, team, and worker relying on collaborative work to achieve successful outcomes.”
Furthermore, Vista Equity Partners’ interest also spills into the intersection of education and technology with the firm retaining its minority stake in PowerSchool Holdings Inc. following its recent acquisition. The K-12 education cloud-based software company was purchased by Bain Capital for approximately $5.6 billion.
“Since our initial investment, PowerSchool has experienced a significant transformation, driven by strong leadership and our partnership with Hardeep,” Saroya said in another news release. “We are confident that PowerSchool’s relentless focus on product innovation—especially through embracing generative AI—and tactical expansion of its capabilities can further enhance education globally in this next phase.”
2024 has remained quite a year for the private investment firm that was emboldened by a $20 billion raise, its largest to date, to support advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) in April. Smith also now has an impressive $10.8 billion net worth as a result of his work in the private venture capital sector.
