David Tepper

David Alan Tepper (born September 11, 1957) is an American billionaire hedge fund manager, the founder and president of Appaloosa Management, a global hedge fund based in Miami Beach, Florida. He is also the owner of the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL) and Charlotte FC of Major League Soccer (MLS).

He earned a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Pittsburgh in 1978, and an MBA from Carnegie Mellon University in 1982. In 2013, he donated his largest gift of $67 million to Carnegie Mellon, whose Tepper School of Business is named after him. He earned the third position on Forbes The Highest-Earning Hedge Fund Managers 2018 with an annual earnings of $1.5 billion. A 2010 profile in New York described him as the object of "a certain amount of hero worship inside the industry," with one investor calling him "a golden god." In 2019, Tepper revealed plans to eventually convert this hedge fund into a family office.

Early life and education Tepper was born on September 11, 1957. He is the second of three children of Harry, an accountant, and Roberta, an elementary school teacher. He was raised in a Jewish family in the Stanton Heights neighborhood of the East End of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. As a boy he “played football and memorized the baseball statistics on the backs of cards given to him by his grandfather—early evidence of what he claims is a photographic memory.” He attended Peabody High School in Pittsburgh's East Liberty neighborhood, His first two investments, given to him by his father, were Pennsylvania Engineering Co. and Career Academies. Both companies went bankrupt. Tepper “keeps the market on edge” and makes significant gains year after year by investing in the “diciest of companies,” such as MCI and Mirant. Investments in Conseco and Marconi also led to huge hedge fund profits for the company.

In 2009, Tepper's hedge fund earned about $7 billion by buying distressed financial stocks in February and March (including Bank of America common stock at $3 per share), and then profiting from their recovery that year. $4 billion of those profits went to Tepper's personal wealth, making him the top-earning hedge fund manager of 2009 according to The New York Times.

In a 2010 speech he recommended several supposedly risky investments, including AIG debt, Bank of America equity, and European banks. Citing experts who predicted hyperinflation or depression and deflation, he argued neither would happen: “The point is, markets adapt, people adapt. Don’t listen to all the crap out there.”

Forbes listed Tepper as one of the 25 highest-earning hedge fund managers in 2013 and 2016.

According to Forbes, Tepper has a net worth of $16.7 billion, as of 2022. The Bloomberg Billionaires Index ranked him as the wealthiest person in New Jersey.

As per Forbes list of The Richest People In The World, dated 8 MARCH 2024, David Tepper ranked #94 with a net worth of $20.6 Billion.

In January 2018, Tepper praised President Trump's corporate tax cuts, saying that the bull market still had room to grow and denying it was overvalued. “World growth is higher,” Tepper said. “There's no inflation. The market coming into this year doesn't look rich; in fact, it looks almost as cheap as coming into last year.”

Tepper keeps a pair of brass testicles in a prominent spot on his desk, a present from former employees. He rubs them for luck during the trading day to get a laugh out of colleagues.

In 2020, the largest parts of his portfolio are Alibaba with 13% and Amazon with 11%.

Professional sports

Pittsburgh Steelers On September 25, 2009, Tepper purchased a 5% stake in the National Football League's (NFL) Pittsburgh Steelers.

Carolina Panthers Tepper bought the NFL's Carolina Panthers from original owner and founder Jerry Richardson in May 2018, and was forced to sell his Steelers shares. He beat out a rival bidder with more ties to the Carolinas, Ben Navarro (Founder and CEO of Beekmok Capital), thanks both to speedy NFL vetting (his Steelers part-ownership allowed the league's owners to bypass the process) and his $2.2 billion bid, the highest in NFL history, lacking other investors (unlike Navarro's). The team's lease on Bank of America Stadium expired after the 2018 season. In a statement, Tepper committed to keeping the team in the Carolinas.

Since the start of his ownership in 2018, the Panthers have had 7 head coaches and 8 consecutive losing seasons, and have also missed the playoffs every season except 2025, in which they finished first in the NFC South with a record of 8-9. Tepper has been described as one of the NFL's worst owners, with the Panthers going into a downturn since his ownership began.

In 2022, Tepper canceled the construction of a practice facility for the team in Rock Hill, South Carolina, after claiming that the city didn't hold up the end of their deal, had his real estate arm declare bankruptcy over the failed project and was forced to demolish the half-built facility.

On September 11, 2022, Tepper welcomed the NFL's first ever transgender cheerleader to the Panthers TopCats squad. Justine Lindsay has been a member of the TopCats for 4 years as of the start of the 2025 season.

On November 26, 2023, after the Panthers lost their game against the Tennessee Titans in Nashville, Tepper gained minor attention after he was heard shouting the word "fuck" as he left the Carolina locker room. The next day, he fired head coach Frank Reich after a 1–10 start to the season.

On December 31, 2023, Tepper threw a drink at a fan during the Panthers' game against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The NFL fined him $300,000 for the incident.

Charlotte FC Upon closing the Panthers purchase in 2018, Tepper suggested his desire to bring a Major League Soccer (MLS) franchise to Charlotte. The Panthers organization placed a bid for an expansion team in July 2019 and were awarded the 30th MLS team on December 17, 2019. Charlotte FC was awarded to Tepper on December 17, 2019, and began play in 2022 at Bank of America Stadium. Tepper reportedly paid $325 million in expansion fees for the franchise, setting an MLS record.

Political activities Tepper and his wife contributed $20,800 to 2013 Jersey City mayoral candidate Steve Fulop. According to the Jersey Journal on October 24, 2012, "David Tepper, the billionaire who supports tenure reform and charter schools, contributed $10,400 to Fulop's council candidates, while Tepper's wife gave the team an additional $10,400." Fulop's former campaign manager Shelley Skinner became the deputy director of Tepper's nonprofit Better Education for Kids.

In 2015, Tepper donated to both U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer and then-U.S. House Speaker John Boehner. In 2016, he donated over $1 million to political action committees supporting Jeb Bush and John Kasich's presidential bids. Tepper supported the Jeb Bush 2016 presidential campaign.

Philanthropy On March 19, 2004, Tepper announced that he would make a single donation of $55 million to Carnegie Mellon University's business school (then called the Graduate School of Industrial Administration—GSIA). This donation was made after he had been encouraged by Kenneth Dunn, his former professor (who became dean of the school). He accepted the suggestion but made the contribution a “naming gift” and suggested that the school's name be changed to the David A. Tepper School of Business. Further, in November 2013, Carnegie Mellon announced a $67 million gift from Tepper to develop the Tepper Quadrangle on the north campus. The Tepper Quad will include a new Tepper School of Business facility across the street from the Heinz College as well as other university-wide buildings and a welcome center which will serve as a public gateway to the university. This brings Tepper's total gift to Carnegie Mellon to $125 million.

Tepper also has made several large gifts to the University of Pittsburgh, including several endowed undergraduate scholarships and support of academic centers and university-run community outreach programs. Tepper and wife Marlene have pledged $3.4 million to Rutgers University – Mason Gross School of the Arts, the alma mater of his wife.

In 2006, Tepper donated $1 million to United Jewish Communities of MetroWest New Jersey toward their Israel Emergency Campaign.

In March 2012, Tepper and his former colleague, Alan Fournier founded a political action group, Better Education For Kids. "Better Education for Kids is entering the fray as private organizations are poised to play a larger role in education in New Jersey. Christie wants more charter schools, and he’s pushing legislation that would allow private companies to take over struggling public schools." According to the NJ Star Ledger on June 24, 2011, "Last week, the fledgling group launched a $1 million campaign to advertise its mission and solicit donations. Unlike traditional non-profits, Better Education for Kids is a type of non-profit not required to disclose its donors. Though the group cannot formally coordinate its work with lawmakers, it will be advised by two of the state’s top political consultants: Mike DuHaime, a Republican strategist with close ties to Christie, and Jamie Fox, a Democrat who served as former Gov. James E. McGreevey’s chief of staff."

After Hurricane Sandy, David Tepper donated $200,000 in gift cards to Jersey City and Hoboken families who suffered loss in the storm.

Tepper serves as a member of the business board of advisors for the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon and serves on various boards and committees for charitable and community organizations in New York and New Jersey.

In 2018, Tepper was the keynote speaker at Carnegie Mellon University's 121st Commencement and was awarded an honorary doctorate degree.

In 2020, along with other philanthropists, Tepper donated $2.65 million through David A. Tepper Foundation to help Chicago with its share of struggle from the coronavirus pandemic. All donations to the fund will be distributed to nonprofit organizations, who will help give citizens a wider access to the help they need, such as basic supplies, food, utility, mortgage and rent, household funds, as well as safety and operations assistance. In April 2020, Tepper's cumulative donations toward COVID-19 relief efforts exceeded $22 million.

In September 2021, it was announced that the Nicole & David Tepper Foundation and the David A. Tepper Charitable Foundation would donate $1 million to the Hurricane Ida relief effort.

Personal life In 1986, he married Marlene Resnick Tepper; they have three children. In 2016, he and his wife divorced. In 2019, he married Nicole Bronish. He had bought the property from the ex-wife of his former boss.

Asked by a reporter about the origins of his strong confidence, Tepper said: “I was never afraid to go back to Pittsburgh and work in the steel mills.” He had been New Jersey's richest taxpayer at the time. The move caused a state official to warn of a risk to the budget of New Jersey because of the resulting loss of income tax.

In October 2020, Tepper announced he was returning to New Jersey for family reasons, a move which may cost him up to $120 million in state income tax.