Mark Walter, the Moneyman Behind the Dodgers Deal

Mark Walter, chief executive officer of investment firm Guggenheim Partners, is a Chicago resident with Cubs season tickets. When the financially troubled Los Angeles Dodgers franchise went on the market, he didn’t let loyalty get in the way of dealmaking. Walter is the controlling partner of the group—it includes former Los Angeles Lakers player Earvin “Magic” Johnson and baseball executive Stan Kasten—that purchased the Dodgers for $2.15 billion in a deal that closed on May 1.

Walter’s foray into sports ownership doesn’t mean he’s giving up his day job running Guggenheim, where he has refashioned a manager of family money into a global firm that manages more than $125 billion and provides investment banking services. Walter, 51, has built up the company’s offerings in exchange-traded funds, the fastest-growing product in the money-management industry, thanks to the acquisitions of fund providers Claymore Group, announced in 2009, and Security Benefit in 2010. The firm is now one of the 10 largest ETF providers in the U.S. with offerings such as the Guggenheim S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF and Guggenheim BRIC ETF.