Carlyle co-founder David Rubenstein on investing: ‘I’ve had a lot of regrets’

Not every big name investor gets it right all the time. Read More...

Even investing masters have a few regrets along the way.

For instance, “the Oracle of Omaha” Warren Buffett has famously said he regrets buying Dexter Shoe Co. and not investing in Amazon (AMZN) in its early days.

Billionaire investor and Carlyle co-founder David Rubenstein isn’t without a few acknowledged missed opportunities either.

“We had a stake in [Amazon],” Rubenstein shared with Yahoo Finance Live (video above). “We sold it prematurely, let’s put it that way.”

“I had a chance to invest in Mark Zuckerberg’s company [then Facebook] when he was in Harvard,” Rubenstein continued. “And he was looking for a little bit of money. My son-in-law told me about it, and I passed on that. When [tech exec-turned-venture capitalist] Marc Andreessen was trying to raise money for Netscape, we told him that would never get anywhere. We turned that down. So I’ve had a lot of regrets.”

WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 12: David Rubenstein, Co-founder of the Carlyle Group and President of the Economic Club of Washington, speaks at the club's luncheon September 12, 2016 in Washington, DC. Jamie Dimon, chairman and CEO of JPMorgan Chase & Co., joined Rubenstein in a discussion on the state of U.S., global and regional economies. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images) — David Rubenstein, Co-founder of the Carlyle Group and President of the Economic Club of Washington, speaks at the club’s luncheon September 12, 2016 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Despite the investing misses, Rubenstein has a decorated career to look back on.

In 1987, Rubenstein co-founded The Carlyle Group alongside William Conway, Stephen Norris, Daniel D’Aniello, and Greg Rosenbaum. Today, the private equity powerhouse boasts $373 billion in assets under management across three business segments and 543 investment vehicles. The company recently appointed former top Goldman Sachs exec Harvey Schwartz as CEO.

Along the way, the former aide to President Jimmy Carter has become a noted philanthropist who signed The Giving Pledge, one of the most plugged-in powerbrokers in investing, and a show host who has interviewed the world’s top leaders.

One of those interviews included a 2018 chat with a leader Rubenstein didn’t stay the course with — Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.

Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon, speaks with US philanthropist David Rubenstein (R), during the Economic Club of Washington's Milestone Celebration event in Washington, DC, on September 13, 2018. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP) (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images) — Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon, speaks with US philanthropist David Rubenstein (R), during the Economic Club of Washington’s Milestone Celebration event in Washington, DC, on September 13, 2018. (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

“When I interviewed Jeff Bezos, that was pretty good,” Rubenstein said. “I’ve known him for a while and we had a really good rapport.”

Brian Sozzi is Yahoo Finance’s Executive Editor. Follow Sozzi on Twitter @BrianSozzi and on LinkedIn. Tips on deals, mergers, activist situations or anything else? Email [email protected]

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