An equity co-investment (or co-investment) is a minority investment, made directly into an operating company, alongside a financial sponsor or other private equity investor, in a leveraged buyout, recapitalization or growth capital transaction. [1] In certain circumstances, venture capital firms may also seek co-investors. [2]
Typically, co-investors are existing limited partners in an investment fund managed by the lead financial sponsor in a transaction. Unlike the investment fund however, co-investments are made outside the existing fund and as such co-investors rarely pay management fees or carried interest on an individual investment. Co-investments are typically passive, non-controlling investments, as the private equity firm or firms involved will exercise control and perform monitoring functions. For large private equity fund of funds and other investors, co-investments are a means of increasing exposure to attractive transactions and making investments that have a higher return potential because of the lower economics paid to the general partner. As a result, many private equity firms offer co-investments to their largest and most important investors as an incentive to invest in future funds. [3] [4]
Private equity firms seek co-investors for several reasons. Most important of these is that co-investments allow a manager to make larger investments without either dedicating too much of the fund's capital to a single transaction (i.e., exposure issues) or sharing the deal with competing private equity firms. Co-investors bring a friendly source of capital. [5]
Co-investment shows benefits for those looking to reduce costs. The types of costs reduced are both fixed and variable. These costs typically are split between the parties involved in the co-investments. Compared to a direct investment where the limited partner is inquiring every cost. [6]
Comparing both direct and co-investments, direct investments typically have better returns than co-investments. Co-investments involve multiple people pulling together their funds and allocating a fund manager to hinder the deal. Whereas, direct investing there is no collaboration, and the owner of the fund has control of what area they have their assets allocated to. Some drawbacks of co-investment include: a slow deal process, negative impacts on relationships with limited partners, as well as additional costs. [2]
Forming a relationship for co-investment opportunities has its drawbacks. Susanna K. and David D. argue that social status and experience are two forms that co-investment opportunities rely on and can provide great limitations for deals to go through. Experience may create bias for investors looking for a partnership on a co-investment opportunity. Social status is a contributing factor for investor partnerships as well. Investors with a high standing in status, generally have more co-investment opportunities and are sought out. [7]
A leveraged buyout (LBO) is one company's acquisition of another company using a significant amount of borrowed money (leverage) to meet the cost of acquisition. The assets of the company being acquired are often used as collateral for the loans, along with the assets of the acquiring company. The use of debt, which normally has a lower cost of capital than equity, serves to reduce the overall cost of financing the acquisition.
In the field of finance, private equity (PE) is stock in a private company that does not offer stock to the general public. Private equity is offered instead to specialized investment funds and limited partnerships that take an active role in the management and structuring of the companies. In casual usage, "private equity" can refer to these investment firms rather than the companies that they invest in.
Venture capital is a form of private equity financing that is provided by venture capital firms or funds to startups, early-stage, and emerging companies that have been deemed to have high growth potential or which have demonstrated high growth. Venture capital firms or funds invest in these early-stage companies in exchange for equity, or an ownership stake. Venture capitalists take on the risk of financing risky start-ups in the hopes that some of the companies they support will become successful. Because startups face high uncertainty, VC investments have high rates of failure. The start-ups are usually based on an innovative technology or business model and they are usually from high technology industries, such as information technology (IT), clean technology or biotechnology.
Bain Capital is an American private investment firm based in Boston. It specializes in private equity, venture capital, credit, public equity, impact investing, life sciences, crypto, tech opportunities, partnership opportunities, special situations, and real estate. Bain Capital invests across a range of industry sectors and geographic regions. As of 2022, the firm managed approximately $165 billion of investor capital. The firm was founded in 1984 by partners from the consulting firm Bain & Company. The company is headquartered at 200 Clarendon Street in Boston with 22 offices in North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia.
A private equity fund is a collective investment scheme used for making investments in various equity securities according to one of the investment strategies associated with private equity. Private equity funds are typically limited partnerships with a fixed term of 10 years. At inception, institutional investors make an unfunded commitment to the limited partnership, which is then drawn over the term of the fund. From the investors' point of view, funds can be traditional or asymmetric.
Terra Firma Capital Partners Ltd. (TFCP) is a UK-based private equity firm. Financier Guy Hands founded the firm in 2002 through the spin-off of Nomura Principal Finance Group. The firm, which traces its roots to the formation of its predecessor in 1994, has invested over €14 billion since inception.
CVC Capital Partners is a Luxembourg-based private equity and investment advisory firm with approximately US$155 billion of assets under management and approximately €157 billion in secured commitments since inception across American, European and Asian private equity, secondaries and credit funds. As of 31 December 2021, the funds managed or advised by CVC are invested in more than 100 companies worldwide, employing over 450,000 people in numerous countries. CVC was founded in 1981 and, as of 31 March 2022, has over 650 employees working across its network of 25 offices throughout EMEA, Asia and the Americas.
In finance, the private-equity secondary market refers to the buying and selling of pre-existing investor commitments to private-equity and other alternative investment funds. Given the absence of established trading markets for these interests, the transfer of interests in private-equity funds as well as hedge funds can be more complex and labor-intensive.
Campbell Lutyens is an independent private markets advisory firm exclusively focused on primary fundraising, secondary transactions and GP capital advisory services in the private equity, private debt, infrastructure and sustainable investing markets. The firm has offices in London, New York City, Paris, Chicago, Los Angeles, Charlotte, Hong Kong and Singapore and comprises a team of over 200 professionals representing over 40 nationalities.
An alternative investment, also known as an alternative asset or alternative investment fund (AIF), is an investment in any asset class excluding capital stocks, bonds, and cash. The term is a relatively loose one and includes tangible assets such as precious metals, collectibles and some financial assets such as real estate, commodities, private equity, distressed securities, hedge funds, exchange funds, carbon credits, venture capital, film production, financial derivatives, cryptocurrencies, non-fungible tokens, and Tax Receivable Agreements. Investments in real estate, forestry and shipping are also often termed "alternative" despite the ancient use of such real assets to enhance and preserve wealth. Alternative investments are to be contrasted with traditional investments.
A private equity firm is an investment management company that provides financial backing and makes investments in the private equity of startup or operating companies through a variety of loosely affiliated investment strategies including leveraged buyout, venture capital, and growth capital. Often described as a financial sponsor, each firm will raise funds that will be invested in accordance with one or more specific investment strategies.
Lexington Partners is one of the largest manager of secondary acquisition and co-Investment funds in the world, founded in 1994. Lexington manages approximately $55 billion of which an unprecedented $14 billion was committed to the firm's ninth fund. This renders it the largest dedicated secondaries pool of capital ever raised at the time.
AlpInvest Partners is a global private equity asset manager with over $85 billion of committed capital since inception as of December 31, 2022. The firm invests on behalf of more than 450 institutional investors from North America, Asia, Europe, South America and Africa.
H.I.G. Capital is a private equity and alternative assets investment firm with $59 billion of equity capital under management. Based in Miami, Florida, the firm operates a group of private equity, growth equity, credit/special situation, primary lending, syndicated credit, and real estate funds. The company provides debt and equity capital to small and mid-sized companies.
Private equity in the 2000s represents one of the major growth periods in the history of private equity and venture capital. Within the broader private equity industry, two distinct sub-industries, leveraged buyouts and venture capital expanded along parallel and interrelated tracks.
Actis is a global investment firm focused on the private equity, energy, infrastructure, and real estate asset classes.
HarbourVest Partners is a private equity fund of funds and one of the largest private equity investment managers globally. The firm invests in all types of private equity funds, including venture capital and leveraged buyout funds, and also directly in operating companies.
Partners Group Holding AG is a Swiss-based global private equity firm with US$141.7 billion in assets under management in private equity, private infrastructure, private real estate and private debt.
Paul Capital is a private equity investment firm made up of a fund of funds, secondary investments and a healthcare direct investment business. The firm has more than 100 employees and manages more than $7 billion across its three distinct investment platforms.
Asante Capital Group is a private equity advisory firm with offices in London, New York City, Hong Kong, and Munich. The firm is active across primary capital raising, secondaries advisory and direct investment transactions. Asante partners with fund managers globally and across the strategy spectrum including buyout, growth, venture, private debt, infrastructure and real assets. To date, Asante has assisted the placement of over 100 funds and transactions with more than 60 notable investment firms, including Welsh Carson Anderson & Stowe, Chequers Capital, Creandum, LLR Partners, Montagu Private Equity, One Equity Partners, Summit Partners, NIO Capital, Whitehorse Liquidity Partners, and others.
