Pre School

Eitan off to school.

I am back from Paris : the last two weeks, including Canada, Astorg and I have met with 18 investors representing private equity programs of $117 Bn. This is where the rubber meets the road. Fundraising by private equity firms remains well below the peaks of 2007 - last quarter was about 10% of Q2 2007 - but some partnerships, including Astorg, attract attention. This month Advent Intl closed their seventh fund at €8.5 Bn, the largest since Lehman flatlined, at the 'hard cap' - they turned away interest.

So what does it all mean? In France, investment has surpassed fundraising by €5 Bn for three years bringing the capital surplus 'overhang' to €19 Bn or about two years of deal-making which, in theory, should bring prices down for primary transactions.  So far, though, this has not been the case.   The market clinched thanks to Hollande's tax proposals where sellers need clarity on how their capital gains to be treated. For now it is a moving target.