Top private equity expert advices from Andrew Ung Los Angeles: Understanding Private Equity: In contrast with venture capital, most private equity firms and funds invest in mature companies rather than startups. They manage their portfolio companies to increase their worth or to extract value before exiting the investment years later. The private equity industry has grown rapidly amid increased allocations to alternative investments and following private equity funds’ relatively strong returns since 2000. In 2021, private equity buyouts totaled a record $1.1 trillion, doubling from 2020. Private equity investing tends to grow more lucrative and popular during periods when stock markets are riding high and interest rates are low, and less so when those cyclical factors turn less favorable. Read extra information on Andrew Ung Los Angeles.
Private equity managers can also cause the acquired company to take on more debt to accelerate their returns through a dividend recapitalization, which funds a dividend distribution to the private equity owners with borrowed money. Dividend recaps are controversial because they allow a private equity firm to extract value quickly while saddling the portfolio company with extra debt. On the other hand, the increased debt presumably lowers the company’s valuation when it is sold again, while lenders must agree with the owners that the company will be able to manage the resulting debt load.
Mezzanine: Mezzanine is a unique strategy within PE—it bridges the gap between debt and equity. When a company receives mezzanine financing from a private equity group, it takes on debt (capital with the agreement to pay it back, plus interest) that includes some “embedded equity.” Essentially, that means that the debt can be converted into equity. Sometimes warrants are attached, which allow the lender to purchase equity at a set price at a later date while keeping the original debt. Sometimes mezzanine debt is taken on by itself, and other times, it is in conjunction with another transaction—mostly LBOs.
Premium private equity companies from Andrew Ung New York: Don’t forget you’re the leader! So behave as such. Remember all the things that did not suit the boss from the previous job and do not do it! Be an example, a role model for others and make yourself enjoyable. Although sometimes you will have to make decisions that will not please everyone or maybe even employees will disappoint you, opt for a professional attitude and not a severe one. Talk to them calmly and patiently and explain to them what the problems are and what solutions you have. It builds, therefore, a very good relationship with all the staff, to be appreciated and rewarded as such, on a personal level. Once you make the decision to open your own business you will need to invest a great deal of time and energy in its development, so it is very important that you enjoy what you do and find satisfaction in the activity you carry out.
But what does the future of entrepreneurship look like? Entrepreneurship is not just about startups anymore. It’s about innovation, technology, and emerging markets. The world has changed a lot in recent years and so have the opportunities for entrepreneurs to succeed in it.
So what does it mean to bring on an individual or family investor in lieu of going the traditional VC route? These individuals often wish to stay in the venture investment game, but desire more transparency to underlying investments than the traditional venture investing experience provides. They also want the ability to cherry-pick the best deals. In addition, they want to avoid paying the typical “2 and 20” — a deal structure that requires investors to pay a 2 percent annual fee (some as high as 3 percent) to the VC firm on top of the 20 percent return on investment. This is why we’re seeing more of the mega-wealthy groups in the region move away from only investing in private equity funds to increasingly working with their family offices to find the right types of direct investments that fit their long-term wealth-generation strategies.
PE funds vs. mutual funds: The biggest differences between PE funds and mutual funds are where capital comes from, the types of companies the fund invests in and how the firm collects fees. PE funds raise capital from LPs, which are accredited, institutional investors and mutual funds leverage capital from everyday investors. PE funds typically invest in private companies whereas mutual funds typically invest in publicly-traded companies. And mutual funds are only allowed to collect management fees, whereas PE funds can collect performance fees.