Billionaire Justin Ishbia has built one of America's most successful private equity firms by focusing on small businesses across the country. He has bought more than 1,000 main street shops, enriched his investors and never lost a dime—but his younger brother, Mat, is still nearly twice as rich
“I talk fast,” says Justin Ishbia with a smile during a recent tour of Shore Capital Partners, his Chicago-based private equity firm. Wearing Nikes with a blazer and jeans, the 46-year-old billionaire moves fast, too, racing through a jam-packed schedule—courtside seats at the Bulls game the night before with his younger brother, Mat, the Phoenix Suns’ controlling owner and also a billionaire; a quick catered lunch with Forbes and four of his top lieutenants followed by a portfolio company board meeting; then a private flight to Oregon to watch U of O’s football team play USC with his law school buddies. He answers texts and emails within minutes, regardless of the hour. “I don’t sleep very much,” he says.Shore Capital moves just as quickly as its founder. The health care–focussed microcap investment firm sealed 801 deals from 2020 to 2023, making it one of the world’s busiest buyout shops. Its assets under management soared sevenfold to $7 billion during that period, as stellar returns convinced early investors like the University of Notre Dame and Sequoia Capital’s wealth management arm to steadily boost their commitments. But with its 15th anniversary this year, Shore remains a minnow in the ocean of private equity—where the largest fish, such as Apollo, Blackstone and KKR, oversee more than $500 billion apiece. That’s by design. “We’ve turned away billions of dollars,” Ishbia says. “In private equity, when you’re good at your job, you raise a bigger fund. My thesis was, ‘Who stays in microcap?’ The answer is basically nobody.”