David Rubenstein

David Rubenstein's renowned private equity firm, the Carlyle Group in September and made news after filing for its long-awaited initial public offering, which it expects to complete in 2012. He founded the firm with William Conway and Daniel D'Aniello in 1987. In the initial years, Carlyle acquired success by using politically connected advisers, including former President George H.W. Bush and former British Prime Minister John Major, to buy defense-oriented businesses. Then it turned around operations and flipped the companies for large profits. Nowadays, the firm has $148 billion under management. Rubenstein sits on the boards of numerous nonprofits, including Lincoln Center and the Kennedy Center. He made a donation of $13.5 million to the Foundation for the National Archives, the largest single contribution ever received by the foundation.  He is ranked 418 and his net worth is around $2.8 billion.