In 2001, 25-year-old Michael Dorrell packed his bags and set sail from Sydney for the streets of New York. He was one of six sent over by his employer, Macquarie Bank, with a clear mandate: buy up airports and tolls.
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The opportunity to roll out the Macquarie playbook in the US was vast – and largely untapped. Thanks to government tax exemptions, the US lagged well behind Australia in the privatisation of infrastructure such as roads and airports. For those who understood the model, it was open ground, and for Dorrell, it turned into a bonanza.
Over the next 25 years, the boy from Griffith in southern NSW went from Macquarie to Blackstone, rode out the GFC, and ultimately founded his own infrastructure fund, Stonepeak, in 2011 – amassing a personal fortune of $12.5 billion (US$8.5 billion) along the way.
There are a few factors behind Dorrell’s success, and that of his company, Stonepeak, which boasts that it has never lost an investment. Firstly, according to Dorrell, it’s the combination he brought with him from his two previous employers: Macquarie’s entrepreneurialism fused with Blackstone’s investment discipline, which has proven to be a powerful formula for success.
Today, Stonepeak is a US$72 billion giant, expanding into datacentres and back over to Australia with the acquisition of the Port of Geelong, marking a significant entry into the local market, and putting rival infrastructure asset managers on notice.
Dorrell, arguably the most financially successful of the Macquarie diaspora, has built his success on a few hard-earned principles, including:
Be ready when the clouds part:
Dorrell is quick to call it luck that when he left Blackstone, the GFC clouds parted, the sun came out, and the markets reopened. But luck only works if you’re prepared, and he’s spent years building expertise, relationships and pedigree, so he was ready to move when the opportunity arose.
Stay in the game longer than anyone else:
While timing and luck are important, so is endurance. Dorrell and his business partner, Trent Vichie, endured four years of rejection and near-bankruptcy, and were effectively fired by Blackstone – yet still launched Stonepeak. The story is a lesson in persistence and recognising and riding global shifts before they become obvious.
Fly under the radar:
In a world obsessed with building personal brands, thought leadership, and high-profile founders and CEOs, Dorrell has done the opposite. Although Stonepeak’s empire is hidden within the world’s everyday infrastructure, he has actively avoided the spotlight, arguing that staying in the background has been a competitive advantage.
Described as “driven, focused and wickedly smart”, Dorrell’s story is one of grit, investment discipline and timing. It’s also a window into the changing landscape of infrastructure investing. (Read full story page 36).
Meanwhile, at almost the exact time Dorrell was leaving Sydney for New York, Vikas Rambal was travelling in the opposite direction – landing in Australia from India. And, like Dorrell, although not intentionally, he would go on to build something of extraordinary scale while remaining largely under the radar. He built the world’s largest ammonia plant twice, raised billions across four continents, and survived co-founder issues, bankruptcy and depression. The fact that he has largely gone unnoticed, even though it wasn’t his intention, highlights how often we overlook the builders shaping our country.
The issue is packed full of entrepreneurs, leaders and stars shaping the country and world.
Our next issue is June/July – the Women’s issue – and we also have the Forbes Women’s Summit on May 6th in Sydney, which is shaping up to be epic. Join us.
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