Founded in 1976 by Jerome Kohlberg, Henry Kravis, and George Roberts after leaving Bear Stearns. The firm pioneered the leveraged buyout and became famous for its 1989 takeover of RJR Nabisco, then the largest LBO in history. KKR went public in 2010 and now spans private equity, credit, infrastructure, and real estate.
Leveraged buyouts and take-privates globally, increasingly diversified into infrastructure, credit, real estate, and insurance via Global Atlantic.
diversified
RJR Nabisco, Dollar General, First Data, Toys "R" Us, BMC Software, Gardner Denver, Axel Springer
Dollar General IPO, First Data (sold to Fiserv), Gardner Denver, HCA
The $25B RJR Nabisco buyout was chronicled in the book and film "Barbarians at the Gate".
| Company | Rounds | Invested |
|---|---|---|
| Helix Digital Infrastructure Other | 1 round, 1 led | $10B |
| Zenobe Mobility | 1 round, 1 led | $1.1B |
| Epic Games Gaming | 1 round | $1B |
| Saviynt Cybersecurity | 1 round, 1 led | $700M |
| Qonto Fintech | 1 round | $552M |
| Wolt Logistics | 1 round | $530M |
| GetYourGuide Marketplace | 3 rounds | $461M |
| Contentsquare SaaS B2B | 1 round | $393M |
| Lighthouse saas_b2b | 1 round, 1 led | $370M |
| PMI Electro Mobility Mobility | 1 round, 1 led | $310M |
| Paddle Fintech | 1 round, 1 led | $189M |
| Greenvolt Group Energy | 1 round, 1 led | $174M |
| Restaurant365 SaaS B2B | 1 round, 1 led | $135M |
| REVEL Mobility | 1 round | $124M |
| Ornikar EdTech | 1 round, 1 led | $120M |
| Neso Brands E-Commerce | 1 round, 1 led | $100M |
| Vitesse fintech | 1 round, 1 led | $93M |
| Fresha Marketplace | 1 round, 1 led | $80M |
| LEAP India logistics | 1 round, 1 led | $62.8M |
| Rebel Foods foodtech | 1 round, 1 led | $62M |
| Leapwork SaaS B2B | 1 round, 1 led | $62M |
| Rocket Factory Augsburg SpaceTech | 1 round, 1 led | $32M |