The hope is for enough positive GDP momentum to keep adding new jobs and improving productivity. December’s labor report showed 256,000 job adds, and core CPI decelerating modestly to 3.2%. And while other inflation data remained stubbornly above the Fed’s target, investors should draw confidence from a resilient backdrop. At a portfolio level, we have […]
The focus now is on mostly global rather than domestic issues. Tariffs, trade, and geopolitical risks are taking center stage. Some of these are theoretical but could mirror events from 2017-2020. And while the rise of bond yields since the election suggest higher inflation to come, capital markets remain full speed ahead. Or as a […]
Increased competition between banks and private credit leading to weaker terms? Not in the middle market, where terms remained investor-friendly. Yes, all-in spreads contracted, but more pronounced at the upper end of the market and for large cap financings. And despite warnings that banks would erode private credit market share, leading direct lenders reported anywhere […]
In a world fraught with macroeconomic uncertainty, geopolitical turmoil, and evolving capital markets, LPs must take a consistent, balanced, and tailor-made approach to portfolio construction. As we have seen, a distribution dilemma can create long term program issues for investors beyond an immediate liquidity shortfall. Tools are available to get cash in the door today […]
It is a clear win-win. GPs can customize the deployment and portfolio construction of their funds — particularly crucial in a limited exit world – juggling concentration risk and extending the deployment of their existing vintage. Likewise, LPs get access to advantaged deal flow in a highly cost-effective structure with the potential for outperformance. LPs […]
We resume our discussion of the private equity liquidity crunch and its impact on fundraising, this time from the LP’s perspective. The supply/demand imbalance in the fundraising environment has shifted to favor LPs. This gives them greater GP access, longer diligence windows, and more negotiating power with LPA terms. But many LPs, their investment programs […]
A successful track record of investment exits is always a given, but doing so today is essential to attract new LP commitments. Timing is key – entering a fundraising cycle with recent realizations proves a manager can navigate a challenging market and generate realizations even in tough conditions. Featuring recent exit activity and distribution-to-paid-in (DPI) […]
In recent years, private equity secondaries have bloomed from a cottage industry, extending back to the 1980’s, to an essential part of the private equity ecosystem. For much of the market’s existence, secondary transactions carried an unsavory stigma. Sellers were seen as distressed, and the resulting sale signaled the end of the GP/LP relationship. Neither […]
Challenging financing conditions and macroeconomic disruptions have ushered in a period of lackluster M&A activity the last few years. Sellers are reluctant to realize investments at what are perceived to be depressed valuation multiples. Buyers meanwhile are wary of overpaying and unwilling to meet sellers at multiples of a bygone era. The resulting valuation gap […]
What remains to be seen are the longer-term, structural impacts of the distribution dilemma. We expect that investors who pull back from the asset class will miss out – as we have seen play out in other market disruptions. Out of current market complexity will emerge clear winners and losers. For LPs in particular, those […]