Jonathan Milton Nelson (born 1956) is an American businessman and investor. He is the founder of Providence Equity Partners, a global

private equity In the field of finance, the term private equity (PE) refers to investment funds, usually limited partnerships (LP), which buy and restructure financially weak companies that produce goods and provide services. A private-equity fund is both a t ...

firm based in

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts ...

, which manages funds with over US$45 billion in commitments. As of January 2022, Nelson's net worth as estimated by ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...

'' is 2.2 billion dollars.

Early life and education

Nelson grew up in Providence. He graduated from Brown University in 1977 with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...

in economics. After graduation, he managed the Chinese division of Wellman, Inc. On returning to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, he earned a Master of Business Administration from Harvard Business School in 1983.

Career history

In 1983, Nelson joined Narragansett Capital, a private equity firm, where he was a managing director. At Narragansett, he specialized in the broadcasting, cable television and publishing sectors. In 1989, he founded Providence Equity Partners, a pioneering sector-focused private equity firm. It is the world's leading private equity investment firm focused on media, communications, education, and information investments. He was dubbed the "stealth mogul" by ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' for keeping a low profile despite his firm's substantial media holdings. In 2008, Nelson and other Providence principals launched Providence's credit investment arm with Thomas Gahan of Deutsche Bank. The unit is called Benefit Street Partners, which has US$9.16 billion (inflation-adjusted) under management. Nelson is on the boards of the Chernin Group, MLS Media, the

Institute for Advanced Study The Institute for Advanced Study (IAS), located in Princeton, New Jersey, in the United States, is an independent center for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry. It has served as the academic home of internationally preeminent schola ...

Princeton, New Jersey Princeton is a municipality with a borough form of government in Mercer County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It was established on January 1, 2013, through the consolidation of the Borough of Princeton and Princeton Township, both of whi ...

, Television Broadcasts Ltd and Univision Communications. he has also been a director of Eircom Plc, Hulu, Language Line, MetroNet (now AT&T Canada),

VoiceStream Wireless T-Mobile US, Inc. is an American wireless network operator headquartered in Overland Park, Kansas and Bellevue, Washington, U.S. Its largest shareholder is a multinational telecommunications company Deutsche Telekom AG, which , holds 48.4 perc ...

(now Deutsche Telekom),

Warner Music Group Warner Music Group Corp. ( d.b.a. Warner Music Group, commonly abbreviated as WMG) is an American multinational entertainment and record label conglomerate headquartered in New York City. It is one of the " big three" recording companies and t ...

, (now

Alltel Wireless Alltel Wireless was a wireless service provider, primarily based in the United States. Before acquisitions by Verizon Wireless and AT&T, it served 34 states and had approximately 13 million subscribers. As a regulatory condition of the acquisition ...

) and Yankees Entertainment & Sports Network.

Philanthropy and other activities

Educational philanthropy

As of March 2019, Nelson is listed as a Fellow of Brown University, and has previously been a trustee. He has donated at least $36 million to the university, contributing to the construction of the Nelson Fitness Center and establishment of the Nelson Center for Entrepreneurship and endowment of two

professorships Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professors ...

. In 2013,

The Institute of Classical Architecture and Art The Institute of Classical Architecture & Art (ICAA) is an American nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing the appreciation and practice of traditional architecture and its allied arts by engaging with educators, professionals, students, and ...

named Nelson the winner of the Arthur Ross Award for Excellence In The Classical Tradition (Patronage) for his guidance of the design and construction of the Nelson Fitness Center. In 2018, Following a $25 million gift from Nelson, Brown established the Nelson Center for Entrepreneurship. Nelson is a trustee of Rockefeller University. In August 2014, Harvard Business School gave Nelson an Alumni Achievement Award, the highest honor bestowed by the school on its graduates. Nelson has committed to the Giving Pledge, a campaign led by

Warren Buffett Warren Edward Buffett ( ; born August 30, 1930) is an American business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. He is currently the chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. He is one of the most successful investors in the world and has a net ...

and

Bill Gates William Henry Gates III (born October 28, 1955) is an American business magnate and philanthropist. He is a co-founder of Microsoft, along with his late childhood friend Paul Allen. During his career at Microsoft, Gates held the positions ...

to encourage the wealthiest people in the United States to make a commitment to give most of their wealth to philanthropic causes. He is on the board of the Newport Festivals Foundation. He is an avid

sailor A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship. The profession of the s ...

and big mountain skier.

References

External links