Apollo Global Management, Inc. (APO)

ITEM 2.    MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

The following discussion should be read in conjunction with Apollo Global Management, Inc.’s condensed consolidated financial statements and the related notes within this quarterly report. This discussion contains forward-looking statements that are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Actual results and the timing of events may differ significantly from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements due to a number of factors, including those included in the section entitled “Item 1A. Risk Factors” in our 2025 Annual Report. The highlights listed below have had significant effects on many items within our condensed consolidated financial statements and affect the comparison of the current period’s activity with those of prior periods.

General

Our Businesses

Founded in 1990, Apollo is a high-growth, global alternative asset manager and a retirement services provider. Apollo conducts its business primarily in the U.S. through the following three reportable segments: Asset Management, Retirement Services and Principal Investing. These business segments are differentiated based on the investment services they provide as well as varying investing strategies.

Asset Management

Our Asset Management segment focuses on credit and equity investing strategies. We have a flexible mandate in many of the funds we manage which enables the funds to invest opportunistically across a company’s capital structure. We raise, invest and manage funds, accounts and other vehicles on behalf of some of the world’s most prominent pension, endowment and sovereign wealth funds and insurance companies, as well as other institutional and individual investors. As of June 30, 2026, we had total AUM of $1.05 trillion.

The credit and equity investing strategies of our Asset Management segment reflect the range of investment capabilities across our platform, from investment grade to private equity. As an asset manager, we earn fees for providing investment management services and expertise to our client base. The amount of fees charged for managing these assets depends on the underlying investment strategy, liquidity profile, and, ultimately, our ability to generate returns for our clients. We also earn capital solutions fees as part of our growing capital solutions business and as part of monitoring and deployment activity alongside our private equity franchise. After expenses, we call the resulting earnings stream “Fee Related Earnings” or “FRE”, which represents the primary performance measure for the Asset Management segment.

Credit

Credit is our largest asset management strategy with $849 billion of AUM as of June 30, 2026. Our credit strategy spans third-party strategies and Apollo’s retirement services business across four main investment pillars: direct origination, asset-backed, multi credit and opportunistic credit. Our credit strategy provides flexible, scaled and diverse capital solutions across the entire credit risk-return spectrum, with a focus on generating excess returns through high-quality credit underwriting and origination. Beyond participation in the traditional issuance and secondary credit markets, through our origination platforms and corporate solutions capabilities we seek to originate attractive and safe-yielding assets for the investors in the funds we manage.

Equity

Our equity strategy managed $198 billion of AUM as of June 30, 2026. Across our equity strategy, we maintain our focus on creative structuring and sourcing while working with the management teams of the portfolio companies of the Apollo-managed funds to help transform and grow their businesses. Our flexible mandate and purchase price discipline allow us to embrace complexity and seek attractive outcomes for our stakeholders. Apollo’s equity team has experience across sectors, industries, and geographies spanning its private equity, hybrid value, secondaries equity, AAA, real estate equity, infrastructure and clean transition equity strategies. We have consistently produced attractive long-term investment returns in the traditional private equity funds we manage, generating a 39% gross IRR and a 24% net IRR on a compound annual basis from inception through June 30, 2026.

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Acquisition of Bridge

On September 2, 2025, we completed the previously announced acquisition of Bridge in an all-stock transaction. As a result, Bridge became a consolidated subsidiary of AAM, and its results are included in the condensed consolidated financial statements commencing from the Acquisition Date.

Retirement Services

Our retirement services business is conducted by Athene, a leading financial services company that specializes in issuing, reinsuring and acquiring retirement savings products designed for the increasing number of individuals and institutions seeking to fund retirement needs. Athene’s primary product line is annuities, which include fixed rate, indexed, payout and group annuities issued in connection with pension group annuity transactions and benefit plans. Athene also offers funding agreements and guaranteed investment contracts issued in connection with defined contribution plans. Funding agreements are composed of funding agreements issued under its FABN program, secured and other funding agreements, which include Athene’s FABR program and direct funding agreements, funding agreements issued to the FHLB and repurchase agreements with an original maturity exceeding one year. Guaranteed investment contracts support stable value investment options within defined contribution plans and allow the contract holder to earn a guaranteed return of principal plus interest. Our asset management business provides a full suite of services for Athene’s investment portfolio, including direct investment management, asset allocation, mergers and acquisitions asset diligence, and certain operational support services including investment compliance, tax, legal and risk management support.

Our retirement services business focuses on generating spread income by combining the two core competencies of (1) sourcing long-term, persistent liabilities and (2) using the global scale and reach of our asset management business to actively source or originate assets with Athene’s preferred risk and return characteristics. Athene’s investment philosophy is to invest a portion of its assets in securities that earn an incremental yield by taking measured liquidity and complexity risk and capitalize on its long-dated, persistent liability profile to prudently achieve higher net investment earned rates, rather than assuming incremental credit risk. A cornerstone of Athene’s investment philosophy is that given the operating leverage inherent in its business, modest investment outperformance can translate to outsized return performance. Because Athene maintains discipline in underwriting attractively priced liabilities, it has the ability to invest in a broad range of high-quality assets to generate attractive earnings.

Principal Investing

Our Principal Investing segment is composed of our realized performance fee income, realized investment income earned from our balance sheet investments, and certain allocable expenses related to corporate functions supporting the entire company. The Principal Investing segment also includes our growth capital and liquidity resources at AGM. Over time, we may deploy capital into strategic investments that will help accelerate the growth of our Asset Management segment, by broadening our investment management and/or product distribution capabilities or increasing the scalability and/or efficiency of our existing operations. We believe these investments may translate into greater compounded annual growth of Fee Related Earnings.

Given the cyclical nature of realized performance fees, earnings from our Principal Investing segment, or PII, are inherently more volatile in nature than earnings from the Asset Management and Retirement Services segments. We earn fees based on the investment performance of the funds, partnerships and accounts we manage and compensate our employees, primarily investment professionals, with a meaningful portion of these proceeds to align our team with investors whose capital we manage and incentivize them to deliver strong investment performance over time. To enhance this alignment, we have increased the proportion of performance fee income we pay to our employees over time.

Business Environment

Economic and Market Conditions

Our asset management and retirement services businesses are affected by the condition of global financial markets and the economy. Price fluctuations within equity, credit, commodity and foreign exchange markets, as well as interest rates and global inflation, which may be volatile and mixed across geographies, can significantly impact the performance of our business, including, but not limited to, the valuation of investments, including those of the funds we manage, and related income we may recognize.

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Adverse economic conditions may result from domestic and global economic and political developments, including slower economic growth and business activity, changes in U.S. and foreign tariff policies, civil unrest, geopolitical tensions or military action, such as the armed conflicts in the Middle East, including with Iran, and between Ukraine and Russia, and related sanctions. Additional risks include new or evolving legal and regulatory requirements affecting business investment, hiring, migration, labor supply and global supply chains, as well as disruptions to energy markets and critical shipping routes.

Uncertainty surrounding U.S. trade policy, the conflict with Iran and persistent inflation remain downside risks. However, U.S. economic activity remains resilient, supported by consumer spending, investment in artificial intelligence infrastructure, increased domestic manufacturing and fiscal stimulus. These drivers continue to support solid growth and a modest risk of recession. Tariffs remain inflationary and may weigh on growth and corporate earnings, with the ultimate impact dependent on their scope, duration and the outcome of trade negotiations.

Inflation remains elevated, limiting the scope of monetary easing and placing upward pressure on shorter term rates. Simultaneously, fiscal deficits and increased U.S. Treasury issuances may place upward pressure on longer term rates, increasing the likelihood that interest rates and credit yields remain elevated.

We carefully monitor economic and market conditions, including global inflation, that could potentially give rise to global market volatility and affect our business operations, investment portfolios and derivatives. U.S. inflation remains elevated, with the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reporting the annual U.S. inflation rate increased to 3.5% as of June 30, 2026, compared to 3.3% as of March 31, 2026. The U.S. Federal Reserve has a current benchmark interest rate target range of 3.50% to 3.75%, unchanged from its December 2025 meeting.

Equity market performance was strong during the second quarter of 2026. In the U.S., the S&P 500 Index increased by 14.9% during the second quarter of 2026, following a decrease of 4.6% in the first quarter of 2026. Global equity markets increased during the quarter, with the MSCI All Country World ex USA Index increasing by 10.5%, following a decrease of 0.8% in the first quarter of 2026.

Conditions in the credit markets may have a significant impact on our business. Credit fundamentals remain generally constructive, with default rates in high yield bonds and leveraged loans declining and distressed exchanges moderating. Current stresses in software and artificial intelligence related credit appear concentrated rather than indicative of a broader macroeconomic downturn. Credit

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ITEM 7.    MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

The following discussion should be read in conjunction with Apollo Global Management, Inc.’s consolidated financial statements and the related notes as of December 31, 2025 and 2024 and for the years ended December 31, 2025, 2024 and 2023. This discussion contains forward-looking statements that are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Actual results and the timing of events may differ significantly from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements due to a number of factors, including those included in the section of this report entitled “Item 1A. Risk Factors.” The highlights listed below have had significant effects on many items within our consolidated financial statements and affect the comparison of the current period’s activity with those of prior periods.

General

Our Businesses

Founded in 1990, Apollo is a high-growth, global alternative asset manager and a retirement services provider. Apollo conducts its business primarily in the U.S. through the following three reportable segments: Asset Management, Retirement Services and Principal Investing. These business segments are differentiated based on the investment services they provide as well as varying investing strategies. As of December 31, 2025, Apollo had a team of approximately 6,140 employees, including 2,010 employees supporting our Retirement Services segment and 600 employees of Bridge.

Asset Management

Our Asset Management segment focuses on credit and equity investing strategies. We have a flexible mandate in many of the funds we manage which enables the funds to invest opportunistically across a company’s capital structure. We raise, invest and manage funds, accounts and other vehicles on behalf of some of the world’s most prominent pension, endowment and sovereign wealth funds and insurance companies, as well as other institutional and individual investors. As of December 31, 2025, we had total AUM of $938 billion.

The credit and equity investing strategies of our Asset Management segment reflect the range of investment capabilities across our platform, from investment grade to private equity. As an asset manager, we earn fees for providing investment management services and expertise to our client base. The amount of fees charged for managing these assets depends on the underlying investment strategy, liquidity profile, and, ultimately, our ability to generate returns for our clients. We also earn capital solutions fees as part of our growing capital solutions business and as part of monitoring and deployment activity alongside our private equity franchise. After expenses, we call the resulting earnings stream “Fee Related Earnings” or “FRE”, which represents the primary performance measure for the Asset Management segment.

Credit

Credit is our largest asset management strategy with $749 billion of AUM as of December 31, 2025. Our credit strategy spans third-party strategies and Apollo’s retirement services business across four main investment pillars: direct origination, asset-backed, multi credit and opportunistic credit. Our credit strategy provides flexible, scaled and diverse capital solutions across the entire credit risk-return spectrum, with a focus on generating excess returns through high-quality credit underwriting and origination. Beyond participation in the traditional issuance and secondary credit markets, through our origination platforms and corporate solutions capabilities we seek to originate attractive and safe-yielding assets for the investors in the funds we manage.

Equity

Our equity strategy managed $189 billion of AUM as of December 31, 2025. Across our equity strategy, we maintain our focus on creative structuring and sourcing while working with the management teams of the portfolio companies of the Apollo-managed funds to help transform and grow their businesses. Our flexible mandate and purchase price discipline allow us to embrace complexity and seek attractive outcomes for our stakeholders. Apollo’s equity team has experience across sectors, industries, and geographies spanning its private equity, hybrid value, secondaries equity, AAA, real estate equity, infrastructure and clean transition equity strategies. We have consistently produced attractive long-term investment returns in the traditional private equity funds we manage, generating a 39% gross IRR and a 24% net IRR on a compound annual basis from inception through December 31, 2025.

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Acquisition of Bridge

On September 2, 2025, we completed the previously announced acquisition of Bridge in an all-stock transaction. As a result, Bridge became a consolidated subsidiary of AAM, and its results are included in the consolidated financial statements commencing from the Acquisition Date.

Retirement Services

Our retirement services business is conducted by Athene, a leading financial services company that specializes in issuing, reinsuring and acquiring retirement savings products designed for the increasing number of individuals and institutions seeking to fund retirement needs. Athene’s primary product line is annuities, which include fixed rate, indexed, payout and group annuities issued in connection with pension group annuity transactions and defined contribution plans. Athene also offers funding agreements and guaranteed investment contracts issued in connection with defined contribution plans. Funding agreements are comprised of funding agreements issued under its FABN program, secured and other funding agreements, which include Athene’s FABR program and direct funding agreements, funding agreements issued to the FHLB and repurchase agreements with an original maturity exceeding one year. Guaranteed investment contracts support stable value investment options within defined contribution plans and allow the contract holder to earn a guaranteed return of principal plus interest. Our asset management business provides a full suite of services for Athene’s investment portfolio, including direct investment management, asset allocation, mergers and acquisitions asset diligence, and certain operational support services including investment compliance, tax, legal and risk management support.

Our retirement services business focuses on generating spread income by combining the two core competencies of (1) sourcing long-term, persistent liabilities and (2) using the global scale and reach of our asset management business to actively source or originate assets with Athene’s preferred risk and return characteristics. Athene’s investment philosophy is to invest a portion of its assets in securities that earn an incremental yield by taking measured liquidity and complexity risk and capitalize on its long-dated, persistent liability profile to prudently achieve higher net investment earned rates, rather than assuming incremental credit risk. A cornerstone of Athene’s investment philosophy is that given the operating leverage inherent in its business, modest investment outperformance can translate to outsized return performance. Because Athene maintains discipline in underwriting attractively priced liabilities, it has the ability to invest in a broad range of high-quality assets to generate attractive earnings.

Principal Investing

Our Principal Investing segment is comprised of our realized performance fee income, realized investment income earned from our balance sheet investments, and certain allocable expenses related to corporate functions supporting the entire company. The Principal Investing segment also includes our growth capital and liquidity resources at AGM. Over time, we may deploy capital into strategic investments that will help accelerate the growth of our Asset Management segment, by broadening our investment management and/or product distribution capabilities or increasing the scalability and/or efficiency of our existing operations. We believe these investments may translate into greater compounded annual growth of Fee Related Earnings.

Given the cyclical nature of realized performance fees, earnings from our Principal Investing segment, or PII, are inherently more volatile in nature than earnings from the Asset Management and Retirement Services segments. We earn fees based on the investment performance of the funds, partnerships and accounts we manage and compensate our employees, primarily investment professionals, with a meaningful portion of these proceeds to align our team with investors whose capital we manage and incentivize them to deliver strong investment performance over time. To enhance this alignment, we have increased the proportion of performance fee income we pay to our employees over time.

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The diagram below depicts our current organizational structure:

Note: The organizational structure chart above depicts a simplified version of the Apollo structure. It does not include all legal entities in the structure.

(1)Includes direct and indirect ownership by AGM.

Business Environment

Economic and Market Conditions

Our asset management and retirement services businesses are affected by the condition of global financial markets and the economy. Price fluctuations within equity, credit, commodity and foreign exchange markets, as well as interest rates and global inflation, which may be volatile and mixed across geographies, can significantly impact the performance of our business, including, but not limited to, the valuation of investments, including those of the funds we manage, and related income we may recognize.

Adverse economic conditions may result from domestic and global economic and political developments, including plateauing or decreasing economic growth and business activity, changes to U.S. and foreign tariff policies, civil unrest, geopolitical tensions or military action, such as the armed conflicts in the Middle East and between Ukraine and Russia, and corresponding sanctions imposed on Russia by the U.S. and other countries, and new or evolving legal and regulatory requirements on business investment, hiring, migration, labor supply and global supply chains.

The ongoing uncertainty regarding trade policy poses a downside risk to the current economic outlook, with lower growth and higher inflationary pressures increasing the risk of a stagflationary environment. Tariffs, which are inflationary in nature, remain in place and may have a negative impact on GDP growth. The potential impact of tariffs on corporate earnings remains uncertain and will depend on the duration and outcome of related trade negotiations.

We carefully monitor economic and market conditions that could potentially give rise to global market volatility and affect our business operations, investment portfolios and derivatives, which include global inflation. U.S. inflation eased slightly in 2025 with the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reporting the annual U.S. inflation rate decreased to 2.7% as of December 31, 2025, compared to 2.9% as of December 31, 2024. The U.S. Federal Reserve has a current benchmark interest rate target range of 3.50% to 3.75%, following a rate cut of 25 basis points at each of its three meetings to end 2025, before holding rates constant at its January 2026 meeting.

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Equity market performance was strong in 2025. In the U.S., the S&P 500 Index increased by 16.4% in 2025, following an increase of 23.3% in 2024. Global equity markets also increased in 2025, with the MSCI All Country World ex USA Index increasing by 32.6%, following an increase of 5.3% in 2024.

Conditions in the credit markets also have a significant impact on our business. Credit markets were positive in 2025, with the BofAML HY Master II Index increasing by 8.5%, while the Morningstar/LSTA Leveraged Loan Index increased by 7.2%.

In terms of economic conditions in the U.S., the Bureau of Economic Analysis rep

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