BPE loses three directors

Barclays Private Equity has parted company with three of its UK directors as part of a restructuring. The departures are part of a review of the captive private equity unit of Barclays' overall cost base, the firm has confirmed.

A source with knowledge of the situation said the restructuring was unconnected with the ongoing rumours about the unit’s potential spin-out from parent company Barclays.  

“Current economic conditions have inevitably affected deal flow across the private equity industry and BPE is no exception,” a spokesman for the firm said. “As a result, we have been prudent in reviewing our overall cost base which has resulted in a small reduction in our headcount.”

BPE: cutbacks

Following the restructuring, the firm will have nine remaining directors in the UK.

The spokesman declined to name the directors leaving the mid-market private equity firm or comment further on the situation, but three directors have been removed from BPE’s website.

Nathan Elstub was a director based in the firm’s London office.  He joined BPE in 1999 having previously worked as a corporate finance adviser at Arthur Anderson, according to a cached web page.  He lead Barclays Private Equity's specialist engineering sector focus.

Anton Wellenreiter, another director based in the London office, joined BPE in 1997. He focused on the consumer and travel sectors and was responsible for such deals as the sale of the Crystal International Travel Group to Thomson Travel and the management buyouts of luggage company Antler and restaurant chain Gaucho Grill.

The third UK-based director to leave is healthcare-focused Mark Taylor, who was based in the firm’s Birmingham office. He was involved in such deals as the public-to-private of The Doctors Healthcare Group and the management buy-outs of Recruitment Solutions Group and Femcare-Nikomed.