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December 2, 2008 7:18:12 AM CST



Private Equity track this thread

Started by Imperator; Last updated by SeacoastNH | View history

Private Equity

Taking public companies private was the hot new paradigm in mergers and acquisitions, until the credit crisis walloped the markets, and a lot of hot deals suddenly cooled

Stories

Stories 1 - 20 of 133

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  • November 2008
    • Hedge Fund Selloffs Behind Swooning Dow

      Hedge Fund Selloffs Behind Swooning Dow

      (Newser) - Hedge funds are increasingly to blame for the swooning Dow, the Wall Street Journal reports, as demands from investors to withdraw funds have sparked a securities selling frenzy in recent days. The rush to withdraw comes as investors—endowments and  pension funds as well as wealthy individuals—see other investments shrink and need cash to cover their obligations. More »

    • Schwarzman Weighs In on Market Reforms

      Schwarzman Weighs In on Market Reforms

      (Newser) - With the world in “the worst financial crisis in recent memory,” private-equity billionaire Stephen Schwarzman advocates seizing the opportunity to prevent a repeat. In an op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal , the Blackstone CEO, who pocketed $677 million from the firm’s IPO last year, calls for global accounting principles, more cooperation between regulatory regimes worldwide and, of all things, more transparency at financial firms. More »

    • Credit Crisis Spells Disaster for Private Equity Firms

      Credit Crisis Spells Disaster for Private Equity Firms

      (Newser) - After a nearly 3-year buyout spree, private equity firms are facing tightened credit conditions just as slumping consumer spending squeezes many of their acquisitions, the New York Times reports. The leveraged-buyout bubble that culminated in $796 billion in deals in 2007 is bursting, leading to a grim reckoning as firms saddled with the debt used to buy them are unable to secure fresh credit to weather the downturn. More »

  • October 2008
    • Times Tough for I-Bankers, in 'Marie Antoinette' Kind of Way

      Times Tough for I-Bankers, in 'Marie Antoinette' Kind of Way

      (Newser) - With Wall Street in free fall, many of its elite I-bankers are seeing the status quo turned upside-down, Vanessa Grigoriadis writes in New York . Once at the top of the heap, working for companies that praised them as smartest people out there, some are fighting to survive on the Street, while others have reversed course, taking jobs with—gasp!—the government. More »

    • Credit Markets Show Signs of Thaw

      Credit Markets Show Signs of Thaw

      (Newser) - The government’s move to take stakes in major banks has finally succeeded in easing some of the panic that’s locked up credit markets, reports the Wall Street Journal. Corporate-bond values rose and commercial paper began trading at lower rates, giving hope that the intervention is working, though experts say there’s a long way to go before business gets back to normal . More »

    • Buffett Grabs $3B Chunk of GE

      Buffett Grabs $3B Chunk of GE

      (Newser) - Mega-pockets investor Warren Buffett is sinking $3 billion into General Electric, whose share prices have slumped a third amid the financial chaos on Wall Street, Reuters reports. Buffet, 78, negotiated a 10% dividend, which could generate $300 million income a year. The move comes a week after he invested $5 billion in Goldman Sachs. More »

  • September 2008
    • Lehman's Asset Management Arm Sold on Cheap for $2B

      Lehman's Asset Management Arm Sold on Cheap for $2B

      (Newser) - Two private equity firms will acquire Neuberger Berman, the largest and most prestigious component of Lehman Brothers, for $2.15 billion. Bain Capital and Hellman & Friedman will pay in cash for the wealth management firm—an indication of just how stultified credit markets have become. Only a month before Lehman collapsed several potential buyers were considering paying three times as much, reports the Financial Times . More »

    • WaMu Looks to Private Equity as Bank Teeters

      WaMu Looks to Private Equity as Bank Teeters

      (Newser) - Washington Mutual is hoping private equity will save the bank after its efforts to broker a sale to another financial institution came to nothing. Both the Carlyle Group and Blackstone are considering a takeover of WaMu, insiders tell the Wall Street Journal , although a deal is not yet assured. Many banks, from Santander in Spain to JPMorgan Chase and Citibank, have been reluctant to take on WaMu's troubled loans. More »

    • Hedge Funds Poised to Profit as Banks Shun Risk

      Hedge Funds Poised to Profit as Banks Shun Risk

      (Newser) - With the last two large US investment banks going commercial in an effort to stay afloat, private-equity and hedge funds are stepping into the void, the Wall Street Journal reports. Taking on roles previously filled by the likes of Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, hedge funds like Citadel and private-equity groups like Blackstone are "stepping further into the risk-taking fold," the Journal notes, and are positioned to profit handsomely. More »

    • Fed Loosens Reins on Private Funds Buying Into Banks

      Fed Loosens Reins on Private Funds Buying Into Banks

      (Newser) - The Fed has loosened the rules that curtailed private investments in banks, the Wall Street Journal reports. The move may inject more cash into the financial system—if private equity chooses to invest—but will raise fears of profit-hungry investors snapping up stakes in banks to make quick cash with risky loans. More »

    • Hedge Funds in Panic on Volatility, Short-Selling Ban

      Hedge Funds in Panic on Volatility, Short-Selling Ban

      (Newser) - Hedge funds have been caught flatfooted as the stock market’s volatility and a ban on short selling has made it more difficult to predict swings, the New York Times reports. Many funds, which generally have flourished amid market turbulence, are reporting their worst year ever, fueling speculation that some of the highest rollers might not survive. More »

    • Morgan Stanley, WaMu Edge Closer to Deals

      Morgan Stanley, WaMu Edge Closer to Deals

      (Newser) - Two of the biggest financial institutions in the midst of the market turmoil are moving closer to hammering out deals. Washington Mutual's suitors are believed to include Citibank, JP Morgan and Bank of America, insiders tell Bloomberg, while Morgan Stanley and Wachovia have stepped up merger talks, reports the New York Times . Morgan is also in separate talks with the China Investment Corporation. More »

    • Wall Street's Falling Stars Burn Hollywood

      Wall Street's Falling Stars Burn Hollywood

      (Newser) - When Steven Spielberg is feeling a budget pinch, you know the financial crisis is bad. His hunt for financing on a new studio deal gets tougher with each day of bad news from Wall Street, Time reports. With credit as tough to come by in Hollywood as everywhere else, many studios are “making a conscious decision to slow it down,” one exec says. More »

    • WaMu Gets OK to Raise Capital as It Seeks Sale

      WaMu Gets OK to Raise Capital as It Seeks Sale

      (Newser) - Washington Mutual is attempting to raise capital or sell itself, the Wall Street Journal reports, and it got a big boost in that effort yesterday from TPG. The private equity firm, which sunk $7 billion into WaMu in April, waived a clause that would have effectively prevented the thrift from issuing new stock. WaMu has instructed its adviser, Goldman Sachs, to assess strategic options, including a possible sale. More »

    • Wall Street Woes Will Wallop Tech Sector

      Wall Street Woes Will Wallop Tech Sector

      (Newser) - Troubles hitting the Wall Street giants promise particularly dark days ahead for the tech business world, analysts tell CNET News. The problems are bound to stifle mergers and acquisitions in the tech industry and further dampen the market for initial public offerings. IPOs have already slowed to a trickle—and may soon grind to a halt. More »</