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561,988 Deals |  34,950 Funds |  22,668 Limited Partners |  28,758 Advisors  
FRIDAY, JUNE 24, 2016
 
 
Surviving scrutiny: The importance of the valuation process for PE and hedge fund managers
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PitchBook Dealmakers Column

As the demand for transparency rises for private equity and hedge funds, the spotlight has been turned toward valuation practices. There are a number of reasons why the valuation process has become important, and they are essential for any fund manager to understand.

“With the increased attention, a key consideration for asset managers is the probability of an SEC audit,” notes John Czapla, managing director and Portfolio Valuation Securities Group practice leader with Valuation Research Corporation. “A failure to comply may have a negative impact on the asset manager’s reputation.” An important component of the SEC review is valuation. Asset managers—private equity firms, hedge funds, business development companies—need to prepare accurate valuations of their investment holdings with proper valuation policies and procedures in place in order to withstand an SEC inquiry.

The attention around valuation isn’t solely stemming from enhanced SEC regulation. In the post-Bernie Madoff era, limited partners, boards of directors and auditors are also demanding enhanced governance and more transparent documentation when it comes to valuations, especially those of illiquid investments. In addition to the heightened caution caused by fraudulent structures, another key catalyst to enhanced governance and transparency is the record flow of capital into alternative investments.

To avoid unnecessary investor, auditor, or regulatory scrutiny around valuations, hedge funds and PE funds should follow several best practices to improve processes, increase transparency, and create accountability for valuation oversight.

Read the full VRC white paper, “Best Practices for Private Equity Sponsors in an Age of Increasing Scrutiny”: click here.

This article represents the views of the author only and does not necessarily represent the views of PitchBook.
 
Uncertainty abounds after U.K. elects Brexit
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The U.K. has voted to leave the EU. In the coming weeks, leaders worldwide will begin the process of integrating the fifth largest economy into a world order it voted to disrupt. As the central banks of England and Europe debate fiscal policy and as markets challenge the best of contingency plans, what happens next?

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Weekly PE Recap
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Here are some highlights from our recent PE content:

  • In our latest Investor Spotlight, we broke down the deal activity, investment strategy, notable dealmakers and much more of media & communications powerhouse Providence Equity Partners, a firm facing an important third act in its lifecycle.
  • There may be a slight downturn in secondary buyout activity this year compared to a record 2015, but overall the SBO market is still in good health—particularly in Europe.

  • After nearly two consecutive years of increasing deal count in SaaS companies, PE investor activity has now declined each of the past four quarters. Operating against that trend, here are the 10 most active firms in SaaS.

  • Thanks in part to a drop in the quality of companies coming to market, median enterprise value over EBITDA multiples in the U.S. declined by the largest QoQ margin since 2012.
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    Recommended Reads
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    PricewaterhouseCoopers has released its mid-year deal outlook report, with plenty of info on the slow start to activity in 2016 and the odds of the market grinding to a halt in 2H. [PwC]

    Some background info on Evergreen Coast Capital, the new private equity affiliate of Paul Singer’s Elliott Management, which closed its debut deal earlier this week to acquire Dell’s software unit alongside Francisco Partners. [Bloomberg]

    Instead of betting legally on companies in the public markets, some sharks choose to gamble illegally on sports. A look at industry leader R.J. Bell and whether his army of touts actually provide customers with any edge at all. [Deadspin]

    Firms like The Carlyle Group, KKR and Partners Group have been introducing new, more-liquid vehicles for accredited individuals. A deeper dive on these so-called interval funds. [InvestmentNews]
    2009 Vintage U.S. Buyout Funds with IT Investments
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    Median IRR: 16.21%
    Top Quartile IRR Hurdle Rate: 27.01%
    Median TVPI: 1.5x
    Average Amount Distributed: $1.17 billion
     
    Select Top Performers (based on net IRR)
    MSouth Equity Partners
    Odyssey Investment Partners Fund IV
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    PitchBook, setting a higher bar for performance benchmarking
    Thoma Bravo secures Bomgar in SBO
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    Thoma Bravo has completed the purchase of Bomgar from TA Associates, which had backed the company since 2014. Bomgar is a secure access business providing remote support, privileged access management and identity management to customers spanning 80 countries.
    IT Consulting
    Ridgeland, MS
     
     VIEW DETAILS    
     
     VIEW 207 COMPARABLES »
     
    Investor
    Advisors
    Ropes & Gray (legal)
     
    Snow Phipps acquires ECRM from BV
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    ECRM provides services, software and data to consumer-product manufacturers and retailers. BV Investment Partners acquired the company in 2013.
    Business Software
    Solon, OH
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     VIEW 254 COMPARABLES »
    Investor
    Financial Advisor
     
    Blackstone buys into Marathon
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    Via its Blackstone Alternative Asset Management arm, Blackstone has acquired a passive, minority stake in Marathon Asset Management. Marathon is a global credit manager with about $12.75 billion in AUM.
    Asset Management
    New York, NY
     
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     VIEW 19 COMPARABLES »
     
    Investor
     
    I Squared Capital-backed Amplus adds rooftop projects
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    Solar developer Amplus Energy Solutions has acquired from SunEdison India a portfolio of commercial and industrial rooftop projects that provides renewable power to corporate customers across India. I Squared Capital has backed Amplus since last year.
    Energy Production
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     VIEW 675 COMPARABLES »
    Investors
    Cerberus offers to acquire GE Money Bank
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    Cerberus Capital Management has submitted a binding offer to purchase GE Money Bank, GE's (NYSE: GE) French consumer finance business. The transaction would represent an ending net investment of about $4.6 billion as of the end of 1Q.
    National Banks
    Nantes, France
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     VIEW 270 COMPARABLES »
    Seller
     
    Equistone buys coating specialist
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    Equistone Partners Europe has purchased a majority stake in Sihl Group from Italy-based Diatec. The company is a manufacturer of coated papers, films and fabrics serving a wide range of sectors including architecture, industrials, publishing, photography and logistics.
    Printing Services
    Bern, Switzerland
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     VIEW 72 COMPARABLES »
    Seller
    Diatec
    Knauf joins KPCB after decade with Warburg Pincus
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    Noah Knauf has joined Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers to serve as a general partner in the firm's digital growth practice. Knauf spent the previous 10 years at Warburg Pincus, where he worked largely on healthcare deals.
      Noah Knauf, General Partner
     
    Venture Capital
    Menlo Park, CA
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    SK Capital unveils promotions
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    SK Capital Partners has promoted Stephen d'Incelli to principal and Jared Kramer and Jay Taunk to senior associate. Kramer joined the firm in 2012, while d’Incelli and Taunk were hired in 2015.
    PE/Buyout
    New York, NY
     VIEW DETAILS    
     VIEW 13 INVESTMENTS »
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