Apollo Backs Emerging Fund Manager Platform

Jason Howard, former co-head of GCM Grosvenor’s private equity diverse manager platform, has received backing from Apollo Global Management to launch his own firm, New Catalyst Strategic Partners.

The Los Angeles, CA-based independent alternative investment firm provides seed and growth capital to emerging, developing and diverse firms.

New Catalyst was created with “support from and in strategic partnership” with Apollo, which included a cornerstone capital commitment of an undisclosed size. Apollo will also provide operational assistance.

Howard most recently spent nine years at GCM Grosvenor, where he assisted developing managers in launching and scaling their businesses. Prior to that, he worked at Credit Suisse as a principal in the Credit Suisse Private Equity (Customized Fund Investment Group).

“Even some of the most experienced investors face significant challenges when founding and growing new investment platforms, and these challenges can be even more pronounced for Next Generation GPs,” said Howard. “I have spent my career helping great investors build high-performing firms, and I’ve seen firsthand that LP capital alone is often insufficient to help Next Generation GPs realize their potential.”

Joining Howard as founding team members are managing director Demetrius Sidberry and senior advisor and operating partner Scott Darby.

The strategic relationship with New Catalyst is a major step for Apollo’s marketplace-focused Expanding Opportunity initiatives, under which it has committed approximately $1.6 billion to-date to invest in diverse asset managers, financial institutions and suppliers, said Apollo co-president Jim Zelter.