Secondaries

Private equity secondaries news from around the globe

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• Dupont to leave Coller Capital after more than a decade 17 Jun 2010. Source: AltAssets. After more than a decade at the biggest private equity secondaries house in the industry, Daniel Dupont is leaving his post as partner with Coller Capital for pastures new.

• New PE derivatives exchange PEFOX set for launch 03 Jun 2010. Source: AltAssets. A private equity derivatives exchange offering participants the chance to take long or short positions on funds for the first time is set to launch within the next month.

• HarbourVest raises £101m in share placing 25 May 2010. Source: AltAssets. Private equity secondaries specialist HarbourVest has completed a £101m (€118m) fundraising through a share placing launched by the firm’s HarbourVest Senior Loans Europe arm, according to Reuters.

• RBS nears €400m secondary sale to Alpinvest 24 May 2010. Source: AltAssets. Dutch fund of funds Alpinvest, which invests on behalf of pension funds ABP and PGGM, is close to taking over Royal Bank of Scotland’s European private equity fund portfolio for €400m, according to the Financial Times.

• EBRD commits $50m to secondaries fund 20 May 2010. Source: AltAssets. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, a development finance institution that aims to enhance poorer economies in Europe, has said that it will commit $50m to a new fund that aims to invest in the private equity secondary market.

• Morgan Stanley Alternative Investment Partners closes $585m secondaries fund 17 May 2010. Source: AltAssets. Morgan Stanley Alternative Investment Partners, the fund of funds business of investment bank Morgan Stanley, has surpassed its $500m fundraising target for a new secondaries fund, collecting $585m from investors.

• HarbourVest in Saudi secondaries deal 13 May 2010. Source: AltAssets. HarbourVest Partners, the private equity secondaries specialist, has bought fund interests from struggling Saudi conglomerate Saad Group, according to Dow Jones.

• Investors bullish on private equity 11 May 2010. Source: AltAssets. Institutional investors and pension consulting firms remain bullish on private equity, with 89 per cent of respondents to a new study saying they intend to increase or maintain their current allocation to private equity.

• Partners Group invests half of latest fund in secondaries 06 May 2010. Source: AltAssets. Swiss alternative asset manager Partners Group has invested almost half of its latest fund in the secondary market, having raised more than its €500m target at a time when many firms are struggling to attract investors.

• UK pension fund USS takes Lehman position in secondaries deal 26 Apr 2010. Source: AltAssets. The Universities Superannuation Scheme, the primary pension scheme for UK universities, has acquired a position in Neuberger Berman Secondary Opportunities Fund II from failed investment bank Lehman Brothers’ estate for $135m.

• Millennium Technology Ventures surpasses target with $280m 26 Apr 2010. Source: AltAssets. Millennium Technology Ventures, a secondaries buyer of venture-backed technology companies, has held a final close of its second fund on $280m, trouncing its $200m target and finishing at its hard cap.

• AXA Private Equity in massive secondaries push 22 Apr 2010. Source: AltAssets. The private equity arm of French insurance firm AXA has acquired $1.9bn worth of limited partnership interests from Bank of America, representing one of the biggest secondaries deals on record.

• Nova Capital exits smoke alarm company 21 Apr 2010. Source: AltAssets. UK secondaries firm Nova Capital Management has sold Detector Technology, a Chinese supplier of radioactive components for smoke alarms. The exit is the third from its QSA Group of companies, a set of businesses specialising in supplying radioactive sources. The total equity realised from the QSA Group companies is £100m (€114.9m), providing Nova with a cash-on-cash return of 7.4 times its original investment.

• AXA to buy up Natixis private equity arm 20 Apr 2010. Source: AltAssets. The private equity arm of French insurance firm AXA has agreed to purchase the domestic private equity activities of French bank Natixis for €534m, according to reports.

• UK’s Pension Protection Fund recruits seven secondaries specialists 31 Mar 2010. Source: AltAssets. The UK’s Pension Protection Fund, a public financial corporation which compensates members in the event of their employers becoming insolvent, has enlisted seven private equity secondaries specialists to a panel for potential future deals.

• San Diego pension association sells PE fund commitment for $1 23 Mar 2010. Source: AltAssets. San Diego County Employees Retirement Association has sold an unfunded private equity fund interest on the secondary market for as little as $1, according to reports.

• Lexington Partners picks up $3bn, pushes on with fundraise 19 Mar 2010. Source: AltAssets. Private equity secondaries specialist Lexington Partners has held an interim close of its seventh fund on just over $3.1bn, and initially set its target at $5bn in early 2008 when the vehicle was launched.

• Encore Ventures makes double appointment 15 Mar 2010. Source: AltAssets. Encore Ventures, the secondaries division of European venture capital firm DFJ Esprit, has boosted its investment management team with the addition of Richard Marsh as partner and Jonathan Freuchet-Sibilia as investment manager.

• RBS to offload PE fund stakes in secondary market 15 Mar 2010. Source: AltAssets. Royal Bank of Scotland is in talks to sell interests in private equity funds in the secondary market to rid itself of non-core assets and reduce its balance sheet, according to the Financial Times.

• Coller Capital in pole position for HBOS portfolio 08 Mar 2010. Source: AltAssets. HBOS is lining up the sale of its portfolio of investments, which include Vue cinemas and coffee chain Caffè Nero, with the sale expected to fetch £500m (€555m) – a stark contrast to the portfolio’s peak estimated value of £1.4bn (€1.55bn), according to the Sunday Times.

• Cipio bags 20 times return from €60m eCircle exit 05 Mar 2010. Source: AltAssets. Growth private equity firm TA Associates has agreed to acquire a majority stake in eCircle, an email marketing service provider, from direct secondaries house Cipio Partners for €60m.

• Secondary deals to pick up in 2010 02 Mar 2010. Source: AltAssets. Secondary private equity deals are likely to pick up this year due to a narrowing price gap between buyers and sellers, according to Reuters.  After a fallow year for secondaries, investors are likely to be better positioned to sell stakes in private equity funds in 2010, said two industry executives at the Reuters Private Equity and Hedge Funds Summit.

• Encore Ventures exits ex-3i VC investment ApaTech through sale to Baxter 01 Mar 2010. Source: AltAssets. Encore Ventures, a division of European venture capital firm DFJ Esprit, is set to make a sizeable return after entering an agreement with Baxter International Inc that will see the New York Stock Exchange-listed healthcare company buy portfolio company ApaTech for $330m.