Alison Maas

Kewsong Lee, Co-CEO of The Carlyle Group

Kewsong Lee, Alison Maas

In late 2018, Kyu-Song Lee assumed the co-CEO role at The Carlyle Group to lead the firm's transition from a partnership to a corporate structure, addressing a portfolio of 300 companies employing nearly one million people globally. Under Lee's strategic direction, Carlyle is integrating diverse leadership teams, where women now lead half of the firm's $250 billion in assets, while adopting a "every deal is a tech deal" mantra to navigate digital disruption. Looking ahead, Lee anticipates a low-growth macroeconomic environment and shifting U.S.-China trade dynamics, prompting the firm to expand private credit investments and prioritize operational improvements over financial engineering to ensure long-term resilience.