Early Life
Wesley Robert Edens was born on October 30, 1961, in Helena, Montana. As a teenager, he was a competitive skier. Edens received a B.S. in Finance and Business Administration from Oregon State University in 1984.
Rise to Success
Edens started his career at Lehman Brothers in 1987, where he became a partner and managing director until 1993. He then joined BlackRock's private equity division, BlackRock Asset Investors, as a partner and managing director. In 1998, Edens co-founded Fortress Investment Group with several partners. Fortress became the first publicly traded buyout firm in 2007. Edens also founded New Fortress Energy in 2014. In 2014, he and Marc Lasry purchased the NBA franchise the Milwaukee Bucks for $550 million. The Bucks won the 2021 NBA championship.
Key Business Strategies
Edens' investment style has been described as based on "contrarian bets, creative financing, and a knack for building business from investments." He focuses on identifying opportunities in various sectors. He has been involved with companies such as New Fortress Energy, Brightline, Springleaf Financial Services, and Nationstar Mortgage. Edens is also focused on environmental awareness initiatives.
Philanthropy
Edens and his family established The Edens Family Fund for Climate Change Research at Princeton University and endowed the Edens Professorship in Global Health at Macalester College.