Steve Koltes Wiki, Age, Wife, Family, Biography & More

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Steve Koltes is an American-born Switzerland-based banker and entrepreneur who co-founded CVC Capital Partners, Europe’s biggest private equity firm.

Contents

Wiki/Biography

Steve Frederick Koltes was born in March 1956 (age 67 years; as of 2023) in the United States of America. ^[1]Chestnut Hill Local Steve Koltes studied till class 10 at William Penn Charter School in Philadelphia, USA. In seventh grade, Steve Koltes opted to learn German. In an interview, Steve said that he wanted to study French; however, he was unable to do so as there was no vacancy as a result of which he opted for German. While talking about it, he said,

I was in seventh grade, and we had to pick up a language. So, I picked French. I have no idea why I picked French, but I took French. I was just twelve years old, and at that age you ca nott expect a great judgment call on languages. Then I was told that the French class was full. Just filled up, and you have to pick another language. So I picked up German. I have got no idea why I picked German, but I picked German.”

After completing high school in the USA, in 1974, he went to Germany, under a student exchange program, and he completed his schooling there. Later, he enrolled at Middlebury College in Vermont, US, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in arts.

Physical Appearance

Height (approx.): 5′ 11″

Hair Colour: White

Eye Colour: Hazel Blue

Family

Parents & Siblings

His mother, Nancy Hare Koltes, passed away on 6 September 2013. His father, John Albert Koltes, was a doctor. He passed away in 2011. Steve Koltes has two sisters, Karen Hare Koltes and Nancy Gilbert Koltes, and one brother, John Albert Koltes.

Wife & Children

His wife’s name is Corinne. He got married to her in Switzerland in 1988. He has a son and a daughter. His son’s name is Troy. and his daughter’s name is Kalya.

Career

In 1980, Steve joined Citigroup, where he worked as an executive officer and looked after corporate banking and corporate finance in Zurich, London, and New York. In 1982, he was appointed as the managing director of Citicorp Venture Capital London. In 1993, Steve Koltes along with Michael Smith, Hardy McLain, Donald Mackenzie, Iain Parham, and Rolly Van Rappard struck a deal with Citigroup to establish CVC Capital Partners.

From 27 January 2000 to 20 February 2002, Koltes worked as a director at Automotive Sealing Systems Limited. On 17 December 2003, he was appointed as the director of CVC Advisers Limited; he held the appointment till 20 July 2008. In October 2012, Koltes along with Donald Mackenzie and Rolly Van Rappard assumed the chairmanship of CVC Capital Partners, replacing Michael Smith. In 2015, CVC Capital Partners purchased the UK-based gambling company named Sky Betting & Gaming. Under his leadership, CVC Capital Partners acquired a beverage-manufacturing company named Starbev, suitcase manufacturers Samsonite, and the printing systems division of Badische Anilin und Soda Fabrik (BASF). CVC Capitals bought Formula One; however, after incurring losses, Formula One was sold to John Carl Malone’s Liberty Media for $8 billion.

A photo Steve Koltes taken during a press conference

Steve Koltes has worked as a member of the board at Evonik Industries and Elster Group. In 2021, CVC Capital Partners acquired Gujarat Titans, an IPL team, for Rs. 5,600 crores. In October 2022, Steve Koltes resigned from the chairmanship of the company. While giving an interview, Donald Mackenzie, co-founder of CVC Capital Partners and Steve Koltes’ close friend, talked about Steve’s resignation from the position and said,

In all his years with the firm Steve has been a tower of both wisdom and determination and will be missed by all of us. He leaves CVC as a world leading investment firm with a superb team and a wealth of opportunities for further growth. Steve and I have been good friends, business partners and fellow deal-makers from the very earliest days of CVC. I will greatly miss his balance and his stewardship of the culture of CVC, and I know that everyone in CVC feels the same.”