Apollo Global Management announced significant changes to its board of directors, appointing financial services veteran Gary Cohn as lead independent director, effective April 21, 2025. He is to succeed Jay Clayton, who is resigning from his role as chair and lead independent director to assume the position of interim U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, based in Manhattan.
Concurrent with these changes, Marc Rowan, chief executive officer of Apollo, will take on the expanded role of CEO and chair of the board, also effective April 21.
“It was an honor to chair the Apollo board of directors over the past four years,” Clayton said in a statement, praising the firm’s transformation and management under Rowan. “I am pleased to welcome Gary Cohn to the board. Gary has a wealth of business and financial services experience across both the private and public sectors and has an unparalleled understanding of the role financial services firms play in our global economy. His appointment as lead independent director supports Apollo’s continued commitment to best-in-class governance.”
Cohn currently serves as vice chairman of IBM and is the former director of the U.S. National Economic Council under President Trump. He previously spent 26 years at Goldman Sachs, including a decade as president and chief operating officer from 2006 to 2016.
“I couldn’t be more excited to work with a transformational firm like Apollo that is driving the financial services industry forward,” said Cohn. “With the ongoing convergence of public and private markets, this is a remarkable time to create value for its shareholders and investors. I look forward to working with Marc and the board to help Apollo capitalize on this opportunity.”
Rowan praised 58-year-old Clayton’s contributions, calling him a “stabilizing force at an extraordinary time for our firm” and operating with the “highest integrity.” Regarding the succession, Rowan added, “With his forthcoming departure, I can think of few professionals more qualified to help fill his shoes than Gary Cohn.”
Apollo confirmed that following these changes, its board of directors will continue to be two-thirds independent.
Clayton’s appointment to the district – news of which Trump first floated in November 2024 – is not without controversy. The former Sullivan & Cromwell lawyer has never been a prosecutor but did serve as chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission during Trump’s first term. Senator Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said this week that he would block Clayton’s permanent appointment to the U.S. attorney post, which he’s allowed to do through a Senate provision known as a “blue slip.”
Trump is very familiar with the Southern District; in 2018, the U.S. attorney’s office brought charges against his former lawyer, Michael Cohen. Further, the office recently experienced significant turmoil stemming from the U.S. Justice Department’s dismissal of the high-profile prosecution against Eric Adams, New York City’s mayor. This action, taken over the objection of Danielle R. Sassoon, then interim U.S. attorney, led to her resignation along with at least one other senior prosecutor, while others were placed on administrative leave.
Apollo Global Management is a high-growth, global alternative asset manager, which aims to provide clients excess return at every point along the risk-reward spectrum from investment grade credit to private equity. As of Dec. 31, 2024, Apollo had approximately $751 billion of assets under management.
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