Private Equity

Job Market - eFinancialCareers.com

Wed, 03 Jan 2007 13:26:45 -0500

Berkshire Hathaway Seeks Chief Investment Officer

Berkshire Hathaway is looking for a new chief investment officer. No pressure: The job only entails replacing one of the most highly regarded investors of all time.

Some Bankers Chafe at Changing Roles

It's been a good year for bonuses and lots of deals are in the air. So, why aren't investment bankers happier?

'Managing Up' is a Key to Promotion

Managing up isn’t the same as kissing up. Not by a long shot. Master it, and your career possibilities grow exponentially.

Thought You Had a Big Bonus? Think Again

While the world’s stock markets edge lower, investment banking - and particularly brokerage - stocks are heading south along with them. Suddenly bonuses don’t look quite so big after all.

Asset Managers Seek Operations Specialists

With the economy showing few signs of a hiccup and Wall Street still raking in fees, executive recruiters are having little trouble placing mid- to senior-level professionals at top asset managers, particularly if they have advanced degrees. In addition, firms need help from people who get things done: those in operations.

Fund-Raising Drives PE Salaries Higher, Report Says

Fund raising among private equity firms is driving managers' compensation higher, with partners at the largest funds earning an average salary of $568,000 and a bonus $1.93 million.

Looking Good—Experts foresee strong financial job market

If the U.S. job market is strong, the market for financial jobs is Paul Bunyan. But how long will this last? Do you update your resume every time reports indicate a drop in housing starts, or a hike in interest rates?

What Trading Managers Look For in Job Candidates

What do trading desk managers look for in new hires? Industry veteran and futures trader Larry Levin chats with eFinancialCareers about the skills needed to succeed in today's increasingly electronic trading environment.

Morgan Stanley Hires More for Latin Wealth Management

Morgan Stanley's Private Wealth Management group appointed Jon Mallon as Regional Sales Manager for Latin America and hired a team of five investment professionals from Lehman Brothers to serve high-net-worth Brazilian clients and institutions in Latin America.

More Layoffs on NYSE Floor

Bank of America let go 43 more specialists and clerks from its New York Stock Exchange floor staff, and warned remaining employees that more layoffs are expected.

Pockets of Hiring for Researchers

Finding a research job on Wall Street nowadays is no walk in the park.

JPMorgan Adds Executive Director Title

JPMorgan has inserted executive directors between its vice presidents and managing directors. Is it good news or bad news for people who work there?

Recruiter Skirmishes

Independent headhunters and investment bank HR staffers say they can't find good candidates fast enough. So, you'd think recruiters would be pointedly charming in their efforts to woo financial professionals. An episode from across the pond suggests this isn't always the case.

Infrastructure Deals Need Managers

Ever since the Australian bank Macquarie proved there were profits to be made in public infrastructure projects - toll roads, power plants, airports and the like - U.S. and European investment banks have waded into the sector, launching funds and hiring senior bankers to manage them.

Merrill Lynch and Hedge Fund Recruitment

Are hedge funds so desperate for staff that they need the help of investment banks to find them? Or are banks so keen to win lucrative prime brokerage mandates that they’re stepping on recruiters’ toes?

Balance Programs Make Inroads

You work a 100 hours a week. Minimum. You have kids at home, or are thinking about having one. Yet everyone you know who got to that managing director's office…

Profile: Head of Global Transactional Client Services

Brian Urkowitz, Head of Merrill Lynch's Global Transactional Client Services: "We rely on our junior team members to critically analyze processes, and recommend improvements, or to engage senior managers to make necessary changes to increase our level of quality."

CVC Capital Partners Adds U.S. Office

Private equity firm CVC Capital Partners is opening its first U.S. office in New York. Christopher Stadler, until recently the head of InvestCorp's private equity business in North America, has joined CVC as a managing partner to run the office.

Uncertain Hiring in Global Custody

For global custodians 2006 was a year to celebrate. Assets grew across the board: JPMorgan's were up 25 percent, Citigroup's rose 20 percent, and Bank of New York, State Street, Mellon and Northern Trust grew their assets under custody, as well. However, take note: The gains may not translate into a hiring bonanza during 2007.

Citigroup: Cuts or No Cuts?

Citigroup is expected to take the axe to jobs in an attempt to reduce costs. But will there be any chopping in the corporate and investment bank?

Bulge Brackets Seek More Algorithmic Skills

The increasing use of algorithmic trading will benefit those with the right combination of IT skills, trading knowledge and expertise with quantitative trading strategies.

Alvarez & Marsal Plans San Francisco Office

Advisory firm Alvarez & Marsal added a number of staffers to its national practice, which serves private equity firms, hedge funds and corporate acquirers. Among the new hires is Deloitte & Touche alumni Alexander Chan, who was named director and will set up a new office in San Francisco.

Financial Temps Have Their Place on Wall Street

Even investment banks and hedge funds use temporary financial professionals when their workloads demand it.

Credit Suisse Overhauls Bonuses

Credit Suisse has overhauled its group share-based bonus approach in an attempt to incent and retain staff earning more than $100,000 a year. The Swiss bank is applying the plan to bonuses paid for last year, which will be announced in the next few weeks.

Wall Street's HR Staffs Focus on Advisory Role

Human resources professionals on Wall Street will continue to hone their workplace advisory skills during 2007.

Blackstone Will Open Hong Kong Office

Blackstone plans to open a Hong Kong office later this year, and has named former Hong Kong Financial Secretary Antony Leung and Ben Jenkins as its co-heads. Jenkins will relocate to from Blackstone's New York office, taking a team with him.

You Want Accountability With That?

What's it say about hedge funds when Amaranth Advisors chief Nicholas Maounis looks to get back in the game a mere four months after the biggest flameout in the sector's history? Or when many of his subordinates have already been picked up by other investment firms?

How Do I Discuss Work-Life Balance? Ask the Expert

While investment banks love to talk about work-life balance, few work environments are as intense as Wall Street. So, conversations about creating a balanced life are delicate. If you're going to start one, you'd best be prepared.

Handicapping the Neuberger Berman sweepstakes

Jim Kim — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 14:09:38 -0400

Well, it certainly feels like an auction. Lehman Brothers has informed three private equity firms--Hellman & Friedman, Bain Capital and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts--that they are still in the running to buy its asset management operations. The Carlyle Group was knocked out; the Financial Times says its $7 billion bid was too low, though it was friendly to Lehman's demands. The Blackstone Group was also knocked out; it was never that committed to such a deal, given concerns over how fund managers would react. Lehman, however, remains undecided if it really wants to sell the unit. KKR and Hellman & Friedman would seem to have the inside track. KKR wants to be a diversified financial service company. Hellman & Friedman thinks the unit would be a good way to grow its asset management ambitions.

For more:
- here's the FT article

PE investors worry about Lehman's stake in hedge funds

Jim Kim — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 09:52:59 -0400

Lehman Brothers was bullish on hedge funds not too long ago. It amassed minority stakes in several big-name fund firms, notably DE Shaw, GLG and Ospraie, notes the Financial Times. Recall Lehman took a $100 million second-quarter writedown due to its stake in GLG, which trades publicly and has been struggling. Lehman's hedge fund stakes have become an issue for the several private equity firms that were sent MOUs regarding Lehman's asset management business. It may make it harder for Lehman to unload its entire asset management unit, not just Neubeger Berman, for which there may be better demand. Two of the hedge funds apparently have the right to refuse the sale of the stake to other investors. So this is yet another complication for Lehman.

or more:
- here's the FT article

Related Article:
Lehman Brothers to invest in hedge fund firms

Would private banks have fared better?

Jim Kim — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 21:05:54 -0400

The New York Times' Deal Professor raises an interesting point: Would top investment banks have fared better had they remained partnerships instead of converting to public companies? One could easily argue that partners-owners-managers would have had a lot more disincentives not to play so fast and loose. Their personal assets were on the line, and they were cut in for the long term. The public company structure allows for "directors and managers [who] may have interests and goals that are different than those of shareholders: A nicer private jet, more pay, short-term-ism and sometimes more nefarious antics." Those who tout the superiority of the partnership model often point to private equity firms, which are--ahem--now bent on going public.

For more:
- here's the column

Pension view: Risk is good

Jim Kim — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 12:54:16 -0400

We've noted that pensions aren't bailing out on hedge funds and private equity funds. In fact, they continue to embrace them. That has made life a little more of an adventure for some pension overseers. Portfolio profiles Bill Clark, who oversees a $77 billion investment portfolio for New Jersey workers. In search of higher returns, the fund voted to diversify out of stocks and bonds and into alternatives. It has a goal of 19 percent in such vehicles; it's at about 12 percent now. But what has really put Clark "out there" was the decision to invest in Merrill Lynch, Lehman Brothers and Citigroup--only to watch them all tank. The Merrill deal fortunately came with some anti-dilutive provisions that have kept the state from taking a big bath. Clark remains undeterred. His search for alpha continues, though you have to wonder if at some point people in New Jersey will grow uncomfortable.

For more:
- here's the Portfolio article

High net worth customers can't get enough of alternatives

Jim Kim — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 12:52:57 -0400

We've noted the long-running debate about whether the accreditation requirements for hedge fund investors ought to be lowered. For many the rules strike a paternalistic note: The non-wealthy can't comprehend the risks. That has galled many over the years in part because they think most of the public is being denied access to really good investments. The latest from JPMorgan Private Bank, according to FINalternatives, is that clients are cutting equity allocations and boosting their share of alternatives, sometimes putting more than half their money into hedge funds, private equity funds and real estate. Within five years, most clients will have larger alternatives allocations than equity allocations. Does this reflect the superiority of alternative investments? Or aggressive sales practices? You can bet the advisers are making out well for pushing certain funds. Or a bit of both?

For more:
- here's the article from FINalternatives

Lehman Brothers courts private equity to buy unit

Jim Kim — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 08:10:18 -0400

So the rumors turned out to be true. Lehman Brothers is indeed shopping around its asset management unit, which includes Neuberger Berman, acquired five years ago for $2.6 billion, Lehman Brothers Asset Management and a private client brokers group. The New York Times reports Lehman has sent MOUs to a raft of private equity firms, including Kohlberg Kravis & Roberts, J.C. Flowers, the Blackstone Group, Carlyle Group and others. It invited bids on all or part of the unit. This is surely a sign that third quarter earnings may well be negative and that another capital raise will be required. Another step, more dramatic, would be to sell the whole company. The asset management unit provided a measure of diversification. If you sell those, you end up with the old Lehman. This nuclear option is not out of the question.

For more:
- here's the New York Times article

What to make of KKR's plans to go public?

Jim Kim — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 17:51:06 -0400

We'll likely get more details about the Kohlberg Kravis Roberts "IPO" when the firm files an amendment to its registration filing later this month. So far, people are intrigued, to say the least, about the deal that seems like a reverse merger with its Amsterdam-traded affiliate. The goals are lofty: to appease shareholders of the poorly performing affiliate and raise new capital. TheDeal.com notes that the current terms call for existing KKR PEI shareholders to get 21 percent of the combined company, which should make them feel better about the near 60 percent drop in KKR PEI's share price on Euronext Amsterdam in 2006. Each KKR PEI shareholder will get a contingent value interest three years later if the shares are trading below $22.25, the current net asset value. KKR PEI holders really have little choice but to hope it all works out, or to sell now. I'm guessing more will choose to roll the dice on the new structure. Private equity will come back, we just don't know when.

For more:
- here's the article form TheDeal.com

Debt specialists in the spotlight

Jim Kim — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 09:43:33 -0400

The Financial Times suggests that the purchase by the Blackstone Group of debt boutique GSO Capital Partners last year speaks volumes about the credit universe that private equity firms must navigate. When debt was cheap, they were big borrowers. Now private equity firms want to profit by being on the other side. GSO has raised eyebrows with its recent purchase of $13 billion in leveraged loans. The hope, of course, is that super senior stuff will rebound and eventually rack up huge gains. This is going on across the street, and valuations for leveraged loans have improved. In all this, the FT sees the long shadow of Michael Milken and Drexel Burnham Lambert. The really gutsy play will be in other forms of debt, such as CDOs. We'll see more debt shops loading up on cheap assets, for better, or worse.

For more:
- here's the Financial Times article

Related Article:
Blackstone buys GSO Capital

A look at how Apollo is faring

Jim Kim — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 17:08:34 -0400

TheDeal.com weighs in with an interesting look at how private equity bigwig Leon Black and Apollo Management have been faring through this credit downturn. Certainly, Black's strategy of focusing on smaller deals, under $4 billion, seems to have paid off. It has generated some envious returns. A $10.1 billion fund raised two years ago, for example, generated an internal rate of return of 42 percent. Against the odds, Apollo has managed two exits recently and is eyeing at least one IPO. That's the good news. The bad news is that it has some really worrisome portfolio companies, like retailers Linens N' Things and Claire's Stores. Harrah's, a rare large deal (with TPG), also seems to be struggling a bit. The Huntsman disaster, of course, has still not played itself out. The issue is whether management can steer the company through this rough patch and get back on track. It could use a push from the economy. But this is where its talent shines.

For more:
- here's the article