Blue Owl Blew Tens of Millions Wooing Rich Nobodies Since 2016
Doug Ostrover, the co-CEO who detoured from Blackstone to concoct Blue Owl in 2016, has been quietly hemorrhaging tens of millions annually trying to convince wealthy retail investors that private markets arenât just for pension stars and bank vaults. Criticsâincluding CFO Alan Kirshenbaumâcalled it a 'big mistake' while Blue Owlâs 50-60 person retail dream team stared at zero inflows like a bad party. Fast forward to 2025 and thanks to a Trump-era executive order nudging 401(k) money into private equity, these slow-and-steady wealth seductions might finally pay offâif you count winning 'second place in the wealth channel' worth the decade slog. Meanwhile, rival Apollo pours tech billions and Ares drafts Morgan Stanley veterans to make financial advisor cold calls a full-contact sport.
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Spending tens of millions and pulling zero? Dougâs private wealth party started like a toddlerâs dance recitalâawkward, expensive, and infinitely hopeful no one remembers the flop.
Blue Owlâs plan: hire 50+ people to coax private wealth and receive empty pockets. Some say insanity; they say 'investment strategy.'
Trying to sell $50K private credit deals one financial advisor at a time is basically door-to-door encyclopedia sales for billionairesâminus the charm.
Source: Businessinsider | Published: 9/8/2025 | Author: Alex Nicoll
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