* Masonite may be the next buyout-backed bust, with Bloomberg reporting that the Canadian doormaker is trying to get its lenders (led by Scotia Bank) to agree to a 30-day reprieve in exchange for higher interest payment and fees. This comes after the company failed to make a scheduled interest payment this past weekend. No wonder KKR has already written this dog down to zero, after paying $1.9 billion for it less than two years ago. * David Bonderman has nothing but kisses for his limited partners. * UK-listed SVG Capital is trying to scale back its payments to parent firm Permira. The primary problem? As of last week, SVG had commitments of £1.25 billion to pay to Permira and others but only £1 billion of cash. * Morning call: U.S. futures slightly lower, commodity and bank stocks take Europe lower, Nikkei sags and Hong Kong dives 4.5 percent. * One-third of all deals announced in 2008 have either been canceled or have so far failed to close, according to UBS.
2 min read · 18 November 2008
Investment Dealers’ Digest has released its third-annual compendium of top dealmakers, attorneys and advisors under 40. It’s a good introduction to a bunch of folks who if you don’t know yet, you will know soon. Perhaps as a sign of the times, however, less than 25% are private equity pros. The elite eight are after the jump.
1 min read · 17 November 2008
Morgenthaler Ventures last week raised $400 million for its ninth fund, and its first to not include an actual Morgenthaler within the general partnership. Alex Haislip reports over at PE Week (sub req.) that Gary Morgenthaler will be a "venture partner" on the new fund, and quotes firm spokeswoman Ching Wu as saying: He has reached a point in his career where he would like more freedom to manage his personal investments and activities. This arrangement allows Gary the flexibility he seeks while keeping him connected to the work and industry he loves. Gary joined the firm in
1 min read · 17 November 2008
The California Public Employees' Retirement System has finally updated its private equity performance data, which was a couple of quarters behind when I called to complain last week. The revised data now brings us through the end of Q2 2008, which makes sense given traditional lag-times in GP reporting and the need to reconcile those reports with actual cash-flow data. But something is missing. Actually, there are 96 things missing -- 96 funds listed in the prior report that are not listed in the new report. What this means is that CalPERS disposed of over 25% of its private equity fund investments between the end of 2007 and the end of June 2008 (not including 2008-vintage funds or the California Emerging Ventures portfolios). Some of these funds may have simply run their natural course, like a Warburg Pincus vehicle from 1990. But the majority are of more recent vintage, including seven funds raised in 2005 and ten funds raised in 2004. This almost certainly means secondary sales, perhaps as part of a PE portfolio reorganization
2 min read · 17 November 2008
What follows are nine VC deals culled from recent Regulation D filings with the SEC. They have not been otherwise disclosed: * Pacira Pharmaceuticals Inc., a San Diego–based maker of controlled-release injectable products, has expanded its Series A round to $85 million, according to a regulatory filing. It had previously secured approximately $30 million. Backers include MPM Capital, HBM BioVentures, OrbiMed Advisors and Sanderling Ventures. www.pacira.com * Waterfront Media, a New York-based online health media company, has raised $20 million in fifth-round funding, according to a regulatory
2 min read · 15 November 2008
1 min read · 14 November 2008
Greetings from the home office, where I’m recovering from chatting and boozing with hundreds of you during the final peHUB Shindigs of 2008. Last night’s Boston finale raised over $3,200 for The Greater Boston Food Bank, and brought the November tour’s tally to over $8,500. For the year, peHUB Shindigs have raised $22,300 for charities in eight different cities. Thank you so much for coming out, and I welcome any suggestions for what we should do the same or differently next year (don’t worry London, I hear you calling).
1 min read · 14 November 2008
Want to get the VC world’s attention? Just create an exceptionally dour PowerPoint presentation, and hope someone leaks it into the blogosphere. Last month’s example came from Sequoia Capital, whose “graveyard” deck provided the firm’s portfolio companies with PR cover for mass layoffs. This month’s comes from Adeo Ressi, founder of love it/hate it website TheFunded.com, and is titled “The Canary is Dead: Something is wrong in venture capital.” Ressi developed the presentation for a private talk at Harvard Business School, and a local startup CEO (and former venture firm EIR) leaked it soon-after. You can see it after the jump, but the basic gist is that the VC model is broken because VC firms don’t believe they can succeed in a more efficient market. In other words, the consensus is: “You have to be brilliant to make money in this system, and most firms are not brilliant. Except for us and a few others.” Ressi’s presentation has been getting slapped
2 min read · 14 November 2008
* It's official: Much of Europe is in a recession. * CIT to become a bank holding company. I wonder if Harrah's will be the next pig at the federal trough. After all, it does give certain players lines of credit. * Morning Call: U.S. futures lower after yesterday's rally (then again, they were also lower yesterday morning), Europe rebounds except for the FTSE, Hong Kong and Nikkei gain. * Paul Boutin speaks Valleywaganomics. * Felix Salmon: Is your money safe at Citibank? * VCs discuss online video investments at NewTeeVee Live.
1 min read · 14 November 2008
* Quadrangle Group's hedge fund goes bye-bye. * Citi cancels Christmas. * UBS wealth management chief Raoul Weil has been indicted on charges of conspiring to defraud the U.S. government, by helping his clients illegally avoid paying taxes. I wonder how many PE pros are among the 20,000 (unknowing?) tax cheats... * If the Detroit 3 need cash, perhaps they should start by cutting their executive compensation. * Sorkin lauds Hank Paulson for having the courage to change his mind. But whatever happened to all that stuff about the market needing consistency and predictability? Seems to me that Paulson may well change his mind again. And again. And again. It's all reactive. * Morning Call: U.S. futures turn positive on better-than-expected Wal-Mart earnings, Europe down at mid-day, Nikkei and Hong Kong both at two-week lows. * Has Warren Buffett lost his touch (again)?
1 min read · 13 November 2008
