Justin R. Ishbia (born 1976/1977) is an American billionaire businessman and private equity investor, being a founding partner of Shore Capital Partners. He is a part majority owner of the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Suns are the only team in t ...

of the

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

and

Phoenix Mercury The Phoenix Mercury are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona, playing in the Western Conference (WNBA), Western Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team was founded before the league ...

of the WNBA along with his brother Mat Ishbia. He is also a minority owner of

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...

team

Nashville SC Nashville Soccer Club is a Major League Soccer team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The team began play in the league in 2020 as a continuation of the USL club of the same name and plays its home matches at Geodis Park. It is principally owned ...

Biography

Ishbia was raised in a Jewish family in

Birmingham, Michigan Birmingham is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is a northern suburb of Detroit located along the Woodward Corridor ( M-1). As of the 2010 census, the population was 20,103. History The area comprising what is now the c ...

, a suburb of

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

. He graduated with a B.A. from

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the fi ...

and a J.D. from

Vanderbilt University School of Law Vanderbilt University Law School (also known as Vanderbilt Law School or VLS) is a graduate school of Vanderbilt University. Established in 1874, it is one of the oldest law schools in the southern United States. Vanderbilt Law School has consiste ...

. After school, he worked as an attorney. He is a founding partner in the Chicago-based private equity firm, Shore Capital Partners. In December 2022, he and his brother Mat Ishbia agreed to purchase the

and the

from

Robert Sarver Robert Gary Sarver (born October 31, 1961) is an American businessman, co-founder of Southwest Value Partners, a real estate development company, and the former owner of the Phoenix Suns, Phoenix Mercury, and RCD Mallorca. Early life and educati ...

for $4.0 billion. His role is alternate governor for the team as well as investor in the organization. The deal to the Ishbia brothers was approved by the

on February 6, 2023. He owns a 22% interest in United Wholesale Mortgage, a company founded by his father and now headed by his brother.

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 re ...

lists his net worth as of April 2022 at $1.5 billion USD.

Philanthropy

In October 2021, Ishbia donated $10 million to his alma mater, Vanderbilt Law School. He had earlier established a scholarship fund at the school through a donation he made in 2015. In January 2022, Ishbia matched his brother Mat Ishbia's $1 million donation to

Dick Vitale Richard John Vitale (; born June 9, 1939), also known as "Dickie V", is an American basketball sportscaster. A former head coach in the college and professional ranks, he is well known for his 41-year tenure as a college basketball broadcaster fo ...

's charitable foundation supporting cancer research. "

References

American billionaires 21st-century American businesspeople Living people National Basketball Association owners Phoenix Mercury owners Phoenix Suns owners American people of Jewish descent 1977 births {{US-business-bio-stub