Stephen Andrew Feinberg (born March 29, 1960) is an American businessman and government official who has served as the 36th United States deputy secretary of defense since 2025. He is the co-founder and former chief executive officer (CEO) of Cerberus Capital Management. Feinberg was also chair of the President's Intelligence Advisory Board from 2018 to 2021, during the first Trump administration.
Steve Feinberg | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2025 | |
| 36th United States Deputy Secretary of Defense | |
Incumbent | |
| Assumed office March 17, 2025 | |
| President | Donald Trump |
| Preceded by | Kathleen Hicks |
| Chair of the Intelligence Oversight Board | |
| In office August 16, 2018 – January 20, 2021 | |
| President | Donald Trump |
| Preceded by | Neal S. Wolin |
| Succeeded by | James A. Winnefeld Jr. |
| Chair of the President's Intelligence Advisory Board | |
| In office May 12, 2018 – January 20, 2021 | |
| President | Donald Trump |
| Preceded by | Shirley Ann Jackson Jami Miscik |
| Succeeded by | James A. Winnefeld Jr. |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Stephen Andrew Feinberg March 29, 1960 New York City, U.S. |
| Party | Republican |
| Spouse | Gisella Sanchez |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | Princeton University (BA) |
Early life and education
Feinberg was born to a Jewish family and raised in The Bronx, New York. When aged eight, his family moved to Spring Valley, New York, a suburb of New York City. His father was a steel salesman. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in politics from Princeton University in 1982 after completing a 94-page senior thesis titled "The Politics of Prostitution and Drug Legalization." While a student at Princeton, Feinberg captained the tennis team and joined the Reserve Officers' Training Corps.
Professional career
After graduating from college, Feinberg worked as a trader at Drexel Burnham in 1982 and later at Gruntal & Co.
In 1992, at the age of 32, Feinberg co-founded Cerberus Capital Management with William L. Richter and $10 million under management; by 2024; its assets under management would grow past $60 billion. In 1999, the firm hired former vice president Dan Quayle as a chairman of Cerberus Global Investment. In 2006, the firm hired former United States Secretary of the Treasury John Snow, who serves as a chairman of Cerberus.
In May 2011, Feinberg stated that he believed residential mortgage-backed securities may present "a real opportunity for continued investment for quite a period of time" and that there were opportunities in buying assets from European banks.
Feinberg has said of the pay received by himself and other private equity executives, "In general, I think that all of us are way overpaid in this business. It is almost embarrassing." He has also noted in comments made in 2011 that smaller private equity fund sizes may be better for investor returns: "If your goal is to maximize your return as opposed to assets under management, I think you can be most effective with a big company infrastructure and a little bit smaller fund size."
Feinberg has been described as "secretive" in The New York Times. In 2007, Feinberg controversially told Cerberus shareholders, "If anyone at Cerberus has his picture in the paper and a picture of his apartment, we will do more than fire that person. We will kill him. The jail sentence will be worth it."
Cerberus owned DynCorp, a major private security contractor, from 2010 to 2020, leading to accusations of a conflict of interest during Feinberg's service on the President's Intelligence Advisory Board, and again after his nomination as Deputy Secretary of Defense.
In March 2025, he left his position as co-CEO of Cerberus Capital Management when he was sworn in as the 36th United States Deputy Secretary of Defense.
Early political involvement
Feinberg is a major Republican donor. In 2016, he served on the Trump Economic Advisory Council during Donald Trump's presidential campaign, donated nearly $1.5 million to pro-Trump PACs, and co-hosted a $50,000-per-person fundraising dinner for Trump and the Republican National Committee.
In February 2017, the New York Times reported that President Trump would give Feinberg a role in the White House review of US intelligence agencies. On May 11, 2018, Trump named Feinberg to head the President's Intelligence Advisory Board.
Feinberg and his wife, Gisela (née Sanchez), contributed $715,600 to Donald Trump's 2020 presidential campaign.
He is a member of The Business Council in Washington, D.C., an association of chief executive officers who meet several times a year for policy discussions.
United States deputy secretary of defense
On December 22, 2024, President-elect Donald Trump announced the nomination of Feinberg to serve as the United States deputy secretary of defense.
Several Democratic senators including Elizabeth Warren expressed concerns over his past experience and possible conflicts of interest between his company Cerberus Capital Management and the United States Department of Defense.
On February 25, 2025, during his confirmation hearing, Feinberg declined to acknowledge that Russia had invaded Ukraine, a common stance among prominent Republicans of the day. He also expressed support for large-scale firings within the Defense Department.
On March 14, 2025, Feinberg was confirmed by the United States Senate with a 59–40 vote. He was sworn in as the 36th United States Deputy Secretary of Defense on March 17, 2025. Feinberg filed paperwork saying he divested from Cerberus, but the paperwork included a clause showing he retains a financial relationship with the firm.
Personal life
As of March 2025, his net worth is US$5 billion. He splits time between his homes on Manhattan's Upper East Side and Greenwich, Connecticut, with his wife.