Carlyle CEO Kewsong Lee's sudden resignation draws attention

Former Carlyle Group CEO Kewsong Lee / Courtesy of the Carlyle Group

By Anna J. Park

Carlyle Group Chief Executive Kewsong Lee, 56, stepped down from his post earlier this week, drawing market attention to his sudden resignation.

The renowned Korean-American CEO's departure from his post came several months prior to the official termination of his five-year term, which is slated for the end of this year. Lee had also stepped down from the firm's board as well.

The Carlyle Group ― one of the top global private equity firms, along with KKR and Blackstone ― said in its statement that the firm's co-founder, Bill Conway, will serve as interim CEO during their search for a new candidate for the position.

Although no official explanation is offered by the Washington, D.C.-based private equity firm over Lee's departure, U.S.-based media outlets reported that Lee's exit was mainly due to the failure of his negotiations with the company's board over a new contract.

Due to the news of Lee's abrupt resignation, the private equity firm's stock price fell by 6.23 percent, ending at $35.29 at Monday's closing. Carlyle has $376 billion of assets under management, as of the end of June this year.

Lee was appointed to serve as the co-CEO of the PE firm in 2018, and had been a sole CEO since September 2020. He joined Carlyle in 2013 as a deputy chief investment officer (CIO), after his previous work at McKinsey and Warburg Pincus for over two decades.

Born in 1965, he earned his A.B. in Applied Mathematics in Economics from Harvard College, after graduating from Choate Rosemary Hall in Connecticut. He went on to study at the Harvard Business School, receiving his MBA degree in 1990.

With Lee taking the helm at the giant PE firm, Carlyle had been increasing its investments into Korean companies, including KB Financial Group, Kakao Mobility, Hyundai Glovis and Twosome Place.

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