Investing

In an industry where performance is king, KKR has thrown down the gauntlet, claiming a victory in the long game of investment over the iconic Berkshire Hathaway fund. This bold assertion by the 553 billion dollar private equity behemoth not only challenges the storied legacy of Warren Buffett. It also sparks a fiery debate on the true measures of success in the high-stakes world of private investments.

Luxembourg-based Alter Domus, one of the world’s biggest asset services firms, has secured a new strategic investment from London-based private equity firm Cinven. Alter Domus said the transaction will increase its value to 4.9 billion euros, which indicates that Cinven agreed to pay the firm’s existing shareholders - its founders and Permira - more than half of that amount. 

This week, the UK Chancellor of the Exchequer will present the UK’s new budget. Since the September 2022 debacle, when Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng’s bizarre tax plan almost brought the UK’s pension and insurance system to the brink of collapse, the extra attention has been justified. In the end, the Bank of England had to intervene to “save the furniture”, as the Belgians say. This earned Liz Truss the dubious honour of the shortest-serving prime minister.

Investors have been liquidating billions of euros in assets in European real estate funds for a year now. German investors in particular have been remarkably active in selling their property positions.

This column is not about where that economic recession remains, but about an earnings recession that has passed. At least, if my global profit indicator is to be believed.

It’s fascinating to observe central bankers like Federal Reserve Chairman Jay Powell outside their usual realm, especially on platforms like CBS’s “60 Minutes.” Powell’s candid admission about the US being on an unsustainable fiscal path is a concern is shared by many investors, including myself, particularly regarding the sustainability of mounting debt used to stimulate economic growth.

Berlin-based Moonfare said it plans to create a dedicated secondary liquidity mechanism that enables retail investors in Eltif 2.0 funds to unwind their holdings before the fund matures.

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) recent move to mandate increased disclosure of fees and other costs by private equity funds has sparked a legal battle with the PE industry. Lawyers representing both the SEC and the PE industry engaged in a heated argument in a US federal court in New Orleans.

Amundi, Europe’s biggest asset manager, on Wednesday confirmed that it has agreed to acquire Alpha Associates, a Swiss-based specialist firm in private equity, private debt and infrastructure investments, boosting its presence in the European private markets sector. Financial details were not disclosed.

The landscape of the technology industry has been dramatically reshaped since the onset of the coronavirus crisis, with big tech companies witnessing their operating profit margins leap from 24 to 29 percent. In stark contrast, other companies have seen a decline of two percentage points in the same period. This trend, far from fostering competition, is solidifying a ‘winner-takes-all’ economy.