Thierry Leyne, business partner of Strauss-Kahn, dies at 49

Thierry Leyne, the Franco-Israeli CEO of Leyne Strauss-Kahn & Partners, died at 49 after jumping from the Yoo residential towers in Tel Aviv on Thursday.

Leyne was the business partner of Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the former International Monetary Fund chief. Together, Leyne and Strauss-Kahn were in the process of launching a $2 billion hedge fund, according to The Wall Street Journal.

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Leyne owned over 30 percent of the Paris-traded firm LSK & Partners, while Strauss-Kahn owns about 20 percent.

Strauss-Kahn was once considered a presidential hopeful in France, yet sexual assault allegations in 2011 marred his reputation and led him to step down from his position at the IMF.

Strauss-Kahn denied the charges, which involved attempted rape, criminal sex, and sexual abuse involving a maid at a New York City hotel. The charges were later dropped.

Despite facing this scandal, Strauss-Kahn continued to play an active role in the business sector, and he and Leyne announced their plans to launch a global macro hedge fund earlier this year.

According to The Globes, Leyne left a suicide note that mentioned depression and poor health before jumping off the Yoo Towers. There was no mention of financial problems in the note.

In 2012, Leyne earned $2.15 million, and he had been a consistently successful business figure since the early 1990s, when he founded the investment firm Assya Capital.

Leyne resided in Tel Aviv and was a dual citizen of France and Israel. Tel Aviv authorities do not suspect foul play in Leyne’s death.

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