Navab Capital’s team of partners and managers have started to move on following the abrupt closure of the firm due to its founder’s unexpected death.
Blackstone announced Wednesday that it had hired Ram Jagannath, who was set to work as a partner at Navab Capital before the firm’s untimely closure. Jagannath had previously worked as a managing director for the Carlyle Group’s flagship buyout fund.
Alex Navab, formerly the head of Americas private equity at KKR & Co., had announced in April that he was starting a private equity firm and targeting $3 billion for its first fund. But after Navab died while on holiday with his family, the firm announced that it was winding down.
Jagannath appears to be the first of the former Navab Capital team to find a new job after the firm’s closure. Other former Navab Capital employees reached by Institutional Investor have not responded to LinkedIn messages requesting comment.
[II Deep Dive: Navab Capital Set to Wind Down Following Founder’s Death]
According to a source familiar with the matter, Navab Capital had been planning to hire several others for the team, including employees outside the United States. According to the source, the company was in discussions with potential hires up until the weekend of Navab’s death.
Jagannath will be joining Blackstone’s newly-launched growth equity platform, which is led by Jon Korngold, a former senior leader at General Atlantic.
“Ram is a seasoned investor with an impressive track record in identifying great companies and helping entrepreneurs scale their businesses,” Korngold said in a statement.
While at Navab, Jagannath served as the head of healthcare and had roles on the investment and management committees, according to Blackstone’s announcement. He will lead the healthcare investing efforts for the growth equity team, according to Blackstone.
“Healthcare is an area undergoing immense technological transformation, and where we believe Blackstone’s capital and operating expertise can help fast-growing businesses become world-class companies,” Jagannath said in a statement.
