Special Edition: Focus on Private Equity

In this special edition of INSEAD Knowledge, we focus on private equity. INSEAD professor Lily Fang tells us about her research into private equity investments by bank-affiliated PE firms. Her study with co-authors Victoria Ivashina and Josh Lerner of Harvard, titled ‘An Unfair Advantage’? Combining Banking with Private Equity Investing, found that over a 16-year period bank-affiliated groups accounted for more than a quarter of all PE investments.

We also cover INSEAD’s recent Asia Private Equity Conference in Singapore, with articles and interviews featuring Brian Bunker (AMP ‘99J) of Riverside and Douglas Clayton of Leopard Capital. In our big interview with INSEAD alumnus Nicholas Bloy (MBA ‘86D), co-founder of Navis Capital, we find out how the private equity industry has gained legitimacy in Asia, even though it has become somewhat reviled elsewhere.

Finally, we look back at SuperReturn Asia and highlight interviews from our archives with alumni Julie Meyer (MBA ‘97D) on venture capital and Deepak Shahdadpuri (MBA ‘98D) on his PE fund’s investment in India’s nascent wine market.

As ever, we welcome your comments and feedback.

Wishing you a prosperous 2011,
Stuart Pallister and the INSEAD Knowledge team.

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INSEAD’s second Asia Private Equity Conference, held recently in Singapore, brought together PE players to discuss their experiences, case studies and the outlook for investing in Asia.

Private equity in Asia: hunting for opportunities beyond the hot markets

As investment hotspots go, China and India are arguably to the private equity industry what ice cream is to a six year old with a sweet tooth. But that is why some funds in Asia are hunting for opportunities elsewhere in the region.

» Read more

Navigating Asia's private equity markets

Regional players debate issues such as the lack of corporate governance and the need for due diligence during a panel discussion on private equity in Asia.

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Private equity may have attracted disdain and notoriety for asset stripping in parts of Europe, but in Asia it has gone from being a ‘slightly dodgy’ industry to one which is gaining legitimacy. Nicholas Bloy (MBA ‘86D), co-Managing Partner of Navis Capital, talks to INSEAD Knowledge Editor Stuart Pallister about the development of private equity in Asia.

» Read more

Bank investments in private equity: an unfair advantage?

A recent study co-led by INSEAD Professor Lily Fang has called into question private equity investments by bank-affiliated PE firms, that accounted for more than a quarter of all PE investments between 1983 and 2009.

» Read more

Asian private equity: coming of age

For all its healthy growth, only one third of global limited partnerships (LP) have allocations to Asia, including developed and developing Asia. What does this mean for private equity investors seriously contending with Asia? INSEAD Professor Claudia Zeisberger discusses the findings of a recent survey.

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The heat is on: private equity goes to Asia

"Valuations are higher - and when valuations are higher, people feel a little bit more comfortable about taking on risk,” says Philip Bilden, Managing Director of HarbourVest Partners (Asia).

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'Leave no stones unturned': due diligence in China's private equity market

China’s budding private equity industry is booming, with new firms springing up every other day to tap the country’s vast economic potential. But even as competition for deals heats up, investment firms should be wary about being too hasty in concluding their corporate due diligence.

Beroni Group: Managing GP-LP Relationships

Sula Vineyards: Indian Wine - Ce n'est pas possible!

Dirty White Swans: Could Unexpected Extreme Events Put You Out of Business?

	Private equity's challenge in the Middle East: how to spend 11 billion dollars? Private equity players in the Middle East face a major challenge. With an estimated US$11 billion in uninvested funds raised before the global financial crisis in 2008, PE firms in the region are under mounting pressure to find and make meaningful investments. » Read more
	A golden age for healthcare With ageing populations in the West and Japan, and with drug targets improving thousandfold since the mapping of the human genome less than 10 years ago, few industries can look forward to the kind of growth expected in healthcare. » Read more
	Where business and friendship mix: toasting an investment in India's wine market Investing in India’s nascent wine market, specifically in Sula Wines, now one of India’s largest wine makers, is a decision that, according to Deepak Shahdadpuri, paid off. » Read more
	Venture capital: Think big, start small and move fast Business school students have changed since Julie Meyer, the venture capitalist who founded Ariadne Capital, did her MBA in the late 1990s. Then, no-one wanted to start their own business, she thought. Financing them, though, seemed more attractive to many. » Read more