February 2009 Issue

Commentary on the month's hottest private equity stories by Amanda Janis, editor of PrivateEquityOnline

If financial engineering is dead, then the strategy deployed by Clayton, Dubilier & Rice is the new beating heart of private equity. The firm has for years best been known for its high-profile stable of operating partners including former General Electric chief executive Jack Welch. Kevin Conway is gatekeeper for all the firm's investments as chair of the firm's screening committee. PEI spoke to him

A planned marriage between a private equity firm and an investment bank ends in acrimony

Three recent surveys reveal that investors in private equity funds are hindered by practicalities and frustrated by GP attitudes but excited by long-term performance. Andy Thomson reprts

What lies in store for the 2009 fundraising market? PEI assesses the mood of limited partners around the world and finds out which LPs have risen to the top of the popularity stakes. By Matt Levin

STATSHOT 2009-02-01 Staff Writer Statistics from Cleantech Group show that venture capital investment in clean technology has been dominated by energy generation for the last three years. More than $8 billion was invested in cleantech energy generation by North American, European and Israeli venture capitali

A UK diagnostics firm is launching an aggressive growth strategy

Social gaming has hitched a ride with social networking sites such as Facebook. Matilda Battersby discovers why venture capitalists are now logging in

Despite a challenged exit market, Conduit Capital has sold its first gas pipeline investment – and is looking to reinvest some of the proceeds

The firm recently named a managing director in Sao Paulo and completed a heathcare deal there

Agri-business investment fund Agri-Vie is on the verge of sealing its first deal while staying on track to reach its $100m target

MENA IN BRIEF 2009-02-01 Staff Writer STRONG START FOR INFRASTRUCTURE FUND Global infrastructure specialist Macquarie Group and the Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank have already raised more than half of their $1 billion infrastructure joint venture fund. The ADCB Macquarie In

Brunei-based BMB Group is using the downturn to spread its private equity tentacles

After witnessing heady times in 2007, private equity investments have slowed

Why a tough 2009 may offer short-term assistance to foreign private equity investors in China while doing little to change the long-term outlook

Christopher Flowers should be making hay. But at the outset of an historic buying opportunity, why are some of his firm's limited partners running for cover? Matt Levin and David Snow investigate

Private equity firm Apollo is putting up $200m alongside its limited partners to help pay for a complicated deal failure

A Southern California-based private equity adviser landed some impressive contracts and plans growth

NORTH AMERICA IN BRIEF 2009-02-01 Staff Writer LEHMAN FIRE SALE Bankrupt Lehman Brothers Holdings has struck a deal with management of its buyout fund, Lehman Brothers Merchant Banking, to spin out a portion of the funds as a private entity. Lehman will retain ownershi

KKR Financial has been given an ultimatum by the New York Stock Exchange

An industry built on long-term partnerships must resist all temptation to play the blame game

Can private equity firms shake off concerns about their ability to invest successfully on stock markets?

Moves in the UK toward greater disclosure have provided ammunition for both the industry's supporters and detractors

EUROPE IN BRIEF 2009-02-01 Staff Writer SLUMP IN THE UK The UK buyout market has dropped to value levels last seen in 1995, at just £994 million (€1.1 billion; $1.5 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2008, according to research from the Centre for Management Buyout Rese

Some European private equity firms are following the lead of US counterparts by exploring a controversial accounting method

Uncertainty over general partners' ability to draw down capital is yet another unforeseen problem the market crisis has created

Private equity can be pure Hollywood. Never mind added value – which firms offer the most added glamour?

Private equity haiku* of the month 2009-02-01 Staff Writer In the first of a new series, PEI applies an ancient art form to a modern (private equity-related) setting: Sacramento bound

Where's the beef? 2009-02-01 Staff Writer Terra Firma, headed by mercurial boss Guy Hands, is well known for making investments that others might see as unorthodox. But the London-based buyout firm may still have surprised a few people with the news that is currently negotiating the purchase of a 90 percent

These days, it's hard to tell fact from fiction 2009-02-01 Staff Writer Sometimes the consumer press scoops us big time, such as the news that investment banking giant Goldman Sachs has acquired private equity powerhouse TPG. This from consumer-electric news site CNET, reporting last month on the exit from A

Honouring a class act in Afghanistan 2009-02-01 Staff Writer An award sponsored by private equity legend Henry Kravis this year honours a woman with a particularly dangerous mission. Dr. Sakena Yacoobi is the recipient of the fourth annual Henry R. Kravis Prize in Leadership for her wo

Limited power 2009-02-01 Staff Writer It is a cruel irony that just as limited partners are reaching their zenith in negotiating power, many of them are financially hobbled by forces beyond their control. In other words, GPs will do nearly anything to secure LP capital, but the LPs – far from being coy – act