Market coverage

We have developed an extensive global network of the most active Private Equity investors in Europe. We maintain close relationships with European pension funds, insurance companies, wealth managers, family offices and corporates.

We focus on a limited number of visible assignments and strive to maintain our granular and comprehensive market coverage. 

Local presence

We think best-in-class fund managers should expand their investors base through placement agents known for their strong local presence. This is what our clients look after when they solicit us. 

We possess the appropriate ground level market intelligence and operating flexibility to organise well-targeted and locally focused fundraising efforts and complement our clients' existing investors base. 

Preparation

• Conduct thorough due diligence

• Prepare placement documentation

• Populate data room

• Define appropriate reporting format

Pre-marketing

• Position investment opportunity

• Identify main market challenges

• Define fundraising process

Marketing

• Pre-qualify investors

• Make introductions, organize meetings

• Report investor feedback

• Provide on-going market intelligence

Legal documentation

• Identify best practices

• Assist in negotiations with investors

• Liaise with legal counsels

• Enable prompt closing

Performance dispersion and persistence

Private Equity continues to provide a larger return opportunity than traditional asset classes. It remains well placed to take advantage of market inefficiencies and of opportunities materialising ahead of public markets. Interest alignment is better organised than in publicly traded companies, and time horizon is more serene to implement rewarding long-term strategies.

However, Private Equity is illiquid and brings little diversification to an existing public equity exposure. But it possesses, of all asset classes, both the highest performance dispersion and the highest performance persistence. This in turn leads investors to pay attention to what makes Private Equity a unique asset class:

• they use the asset class as a return enhancer, not a risk diversifier

• they consider past performance as a reliable predictor of future performance and pay meticulous attention to quantitative issues

• they have a bottom up approach.

Implications

The asset class's performance dispersion and performance persistence has implications. To fully integrate investors requirements, fund managers must document their track record and distribution capacity more acutely than in the past:

• how much has been effectively distributed to date and how much is expected during the course of the fundraising?

• how much financial and operational restructuring is required on unrealised portfolios?

• to what extent can the fund manager keep executing its strategy and deliver corresponding performance in its next fund?