May 2007 Issue

    Month: May
    Year: 2007

    Back to Print Editions

    FIRST ROUND(3)

    …on a basketball court. For kids.

    Editor's letter(2)

    People like lists, and yet private equity, for several reasons, has been particularly resistant to list-building. First of all, it's hard to compile information in a non-transparent industry. A second impediment has to do with the many stations at which capital stops on its way from investor to GP to portfolio company and back. In […]

    VENTURESCOPE(2)

    Europe may be leading the debate on climate change, but a new report by Library House shows that's its lagging in actual cleantech investment. When it comes to funding, can Europe live up to the rhetoric? By Dave Keating.

    VENTURESCOPE

    Venture capital investment in Swedish biotech and cleantech companies is gathering pace. Jo Nash finds out what lies behind the trend.

    NORTH AFRICA BECKONS

    Private equity firms are testing the depth of North Africa's fledgling private equity markets with new offerings.

    NOT JUST INDIA, CHINA

    EMAlternatives, a brand new private equity consultant, is offering large institutions access to emerging markets – Asia included.

    READY TO BUILD A NEW FRANCHISE

    The Arab Bank Group is constructing an investment banking platform for the Middle East, North Africa and Turkey.

    PEO 2.0:<br/>POWER TO THE PEOPLE

    Nicholas Lockey, editor of PrivateEquityOnline.com, looks behind the headlines of the last four weeks on the web.

    ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE LAWS

    From recent events, many will have drawn the conclusion that China is no place for private equity firms to attempt a controlling buyout. So what's going on at Zhuhai Zhongfu?

    NERVOUS NETHERLANDS

    Dutch private equity has come under attack from politicians and the national press.

    ON THE RECORD

    Founded in 1997, and originally investing on a deal-by-deal basis, London-based secondary investment specialist Vision Capital launched Vision Capital Partners VI LP in May 2006. The fund comprises a core of €350 million with up to another €650 million available in parallel structures. PEI caught up with Julian Mash, Vision Capital's founder and chief executive, and asked him what the firm has been up to lately.

    BLACKSTONE'S WHITE FLAG

    The outcome of the La Tasca sale underlines the fact that property entrepreneurs present a considerable threat to private equity firms in auction processes.

    Picking winners

    Oliver Gottschalg and Bernd Kreuter1 discuss possible private equity fund selection criteria and their efficiency.

    THAT WAS FAST

    KKR's biggest LP – a Euronext-traded entity controlled by the firm itself – is almost out of money.

    Canada by numbers

    The Canadian buyout industry boasted massive growth in 2006, but the country's market size remains modest by global standards. Rob Kotecki reports.

    CONFLICT-FREE PTP

    Private equity firms should have the freedom to go hostile on public companies.

    A matter of trusts

    Following a tax policy change, many Canadian income trusts are exploring sales to private equity firms. Actual deal activity may not live up to expectations. Rob Kotecki reports.

    WHEN HARVEY MET LENNY

    Two heavy-lifting corporate executives are helping Ripplewood ‘scale up’.

    OBITUARY L. WAYNE HARBER (1953 – 2007)

    OBITUARYL. WAYNE HARBER (1953 ? 2007) Staff 2007-05-01 Writer In an industry where many travel extensively, Wayne Harber stood out as a genuine globetrotter. As head of business development outside the United States for alternative asset investment group Hamilton Lane, he covered wha

    When will America's party end?

    With default rates in the US at historic lows, financial sponsors of leveraged buyouts, as well as the providers of that leverage, are feeling confident about the future. But are seeds of destruction being sown amid the optimism? By Wanching Leong.

    Ratings as regulator

    Private equity firms are facing unprecedented scrutiny when it comes to transparency and disclosure. Ratings agencies may be able to ease the pressure, argues Paul Watters.

    BULL MARKET

    Some US private equity firms have set their sights on the ‘lifestyle sports’ arena.

    Gatecrashing the London club

    Specialist credit funds have revolutionised the leveraged loan market. But could this mean trouble for the private equity industry when things start to go wrong? James Taylor and Andy Thomson report.

    DIRECT FROM SACRAMENTO

    CalPERS is preparing to become a major investor in infrastructure.

    IS IT PRIVATE EQUITY?

    A recent deal from Apollo Investment stretches definitions. Get used to this.

    FIRST ROUND(2)

    FIRST ROUND 2007-05-01 Staff Writer Just how anyone can question private equity's status as a force for economic good is beyond us. Not only do many successful general partners create jobs in their investment portfolio, but they also boost local businesses around them. Take Apax Partners for example: the Lon

    FIRST ROUND

    …on a basketball court. For kids.

    Editor's letter

    Editor's letter 2007-05-01 Staff Writer People like lists, and yet private equity, for several reasons, has been particularly resistant to list-building. First of all, it's hard to compile information in a non-transparent industry. A second impediment has to do with the many stations a