Paul Capital adds to new co-investment team(3)

San Francisco-based Paul Capital Investments has hired Dan Townsend to its co-investment team as a principal.

Paul Capital launched its co-investment team this April, installing Dana O’Brien, a co-founder of Cornerstone Equity Investors, to lead the effort as a managing director. Townsend is the firm’s second hire to the new team. As a principle, and work on deal sourcing and due diligence.

Townsend comes to Paul Capital from GE Asset Management, where he was vice president of GE’s International Private Equity Group. While there he helped to raise a $436 million fund for the group that focused exclusively on co-investments.

Formed in 2006 as a partnership between Paul Capital Partners and Bank of Ireland, Paul Capital’s investment arm uses funds of funds products to provide investors with access to private equity investment opportunities. Late last year the division rebranded itself, changing its name from the original Paul Capital Top Tier Investments to its present name, to reflect the expansion of its core fund of funds offerings. Paul Capital Investments has $1.2 billion in assets under management.

The firm has been on a hiring spree in recent months. In December of last year Paul Capital brought on Jay Backstrand, Clare Canale and Brian DeFee to form a corporate development team. This March the firm hired Lara Sullivan and John Leone to its healthcare team after the departure of three partners to Cowen Group.