John Phelan is the Founder and Chairman of Rugger Management, LLC a private investment firm based in Palm Beach, Florida. Before launching Rugger, he co-founded MSD Capital, L.P. (“MSD”) in 1998, the private investment firm for Michael Dell, the founder and CEO of Dell Technologies. John was also the co-founder of MSD Partners, L.P., an SEC-registered investment adviser for a select group to invest in strategies initially developed by MSD. John is Chairman Emeritus of MSD and during his leadership, the firm posted double-digit net returns and over $20 billion in profits.
John received his M.B.A. from Harvard Business School, a bachelor’s in Economics and Political Science from S.M.U., and a general course degree with an emphasis in economics and international relations from the London School of Economics. He is on the Board of Trustees at the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Aspen Art Museum (Chairman), Spirit of America, and Third Option Foundation. He is also involved with his respective alma maters and currently serves on the Board of Dean’s Advisors for the Harvard Business School, the Investment Committee for the S.M.U. Endowment, and the North American Advisory Board for the London School of Economics. John and his wife Amy have permanently endowed free admission to the Aspen Art Museum and recently named the Phelan US Centre at LSE.
John is an avid fisherman and was born and raised in Coral Gables, Florida.
