Shareholders filed a proposed class‑action complaint on Monday against Apollo Global Management and its billionaire co‑founders Leon Black and Marc Rowan, accusing them of misleading investors by failing to disclose significant business interactions with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.
The lawsuit, lodged in federal court in Manhattan, alleges that Apollo and its leaders repeatedly denied any business relationship with Epstein in regulatory filings in 2021 and 2022, despite claims that Epstein was significantly involved and communicated regularly with senior Apollo personnel about the firm’s operations during the 2010s.
Investors contend that the revelation of these ties triggered a roughly 15 % drop in Apollo’s share price in February, erasing about $12 billion in market value. The complaint says earlier disclosures, including a 2021 review by law firm Dechert showing Black paid Epstein $158 million for tax and estate planning, failed to accurately reflect Epstein’s involvement in Apollo’s business.
Apollo has acknowledged the Dechert review but maintained that Epstein was never retained by the firm nor invested in any Apollo‑managed funds, and it said only Black — not Rowan or other executives — had personal or business contact with Epstein. Black has denied wrongdoing and said he was not aware of Epstein’s criminal conduct.
The plaintiffs also point to newly public documents from the U.S. Department of Justice and media reporting suggesting Epstein communicated with Apollo officials, and are calling for a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission probe. Although Black stepped down as CEO in 2021, he still owned about 7 % of Apollo stock as of April 2025, which the lawsuit says leaves him liable as a control person.
Apollo and its executives have not commented publicly on the litigation.
