Blackstone’s Stephen Schwarzman just took delivery of a $400 million superyacht named Destiny

Stephen Schwarzman oversees one of the world’s biggest investment firms, yet he is often spotted wearing colourful Swatch watches that cost about $140 instead of luxury timepieces worth tens of thousands of dollars. Now the Blackstone chairman has added another high-profile possession to his portfolio, buying a custom-built superyacht estimated to cost around $400 million.

Named Destiny, the 101.2-metre yacht has officially been handed over by Dutch shipbuilder Feadship after several years of construction. The yacht was previously known only as Project 1014. The vessel has now entered service and has already left the Netherlands, making a brief stop in the United Kingdom before continuing towards Gibraltar, according to Boat International. Its delivery places Destiny among the small group of privately owned superyachts measuring more than 100 metres, a category reserved for some of the world’s wealthiest individuals.

Construction on the yacht began several years ago and remained out of public view until occasional sightings during outfitting, launch and sea trials. The vessel completed extensive testing after entering sea trials in April before being formally delivered to Schwarzman. It now sails under the Cayman Islands flag. Feadship has built only a limited number of custom yachts exceeding 100 metres, making Destiny one of the largest projects ever completed by the Dutch shipyard.

The yacht also reflects Schwarzman’s remarkable business career. Blackstone, the investment company he co-founded with Peter Peterson in 1985, started with just $400,000 in seed capital. Four decades later, the firm manages around $1.4 trillion in assets, while its co-founder has taken delivery of a yacht worth roughly 1,000 times the company’s original starting capital.