PRIVATE EQUITY
Financial investors in Germany have a difficult year behind him, their investments plummeted tremendously. For the current year, but again, they expect better business. Hopes now rest among other IPOs of portfolio companies.
In Germany, international private equity firms like Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) on the road.
FRANKFURT. After the collapse last year, the investment companies for 2010 are cautiously optimistic mood. According to the "Private Equity Outlook 2010" by the industry association BVK expect more than two-thirds of the respondents an increase in investments, almost one in five expects at least a consistent level of investment. The companies also tend to expect stable to slightly declining company valuations.
"The trend has clearly upward," said Association Executive Director Dorte Hoeppner Handelsblatt. The industry has high hopes for their words on the capital needs of SMEs. "Companies have a real financial issue and look for alternatives," added Hoeppner. Also could be the start IPO market to help facilitate the participation of companies to profitable exits from their investments back.
In the current year, the top dogs of the counting private equity firm KKR's entry at the Heidelberg flavors and ingredients manufacturer Rudolf Wild GmbH & Co KG had been talked about. Earlier, the Swedish company EQT acquired jointly with a state fund the specialist publisher Springer Science. In addition, currently three portfolio companies of financial investors are to jump on the stock market: the chemicals distributor Brenntag, Germany Cable and fashion brand Tom Tailor.
Experienced its first boom in the financial investors between 1999 and 2001, before the Internet bubble burst on the stock exchanges. In 2006/2007, they marked records again, then sent the financial crisis the industry into a tailspin. In recent years invested holding companies within Germany only 2.4 billion euros, compared with 9.1 billion euros in 2008. The number of funded companies fell slightly to 1179th The declines dragged on through all market segments, ranging from acquisitions of industrial companies to finance young entrepreneurs.
In the buy-out area based companies expect more business in 2010, especially in takeovers of insolvent companies and family businesses. Expected growth in the SME financing and minority interests dominate. Also, the majority of the surveyed financial investors is given banks more cautious in lending by even higher proportions of equity in transactions.
Restrained provide the affiliates with respect to their fundraising plans - that is finding more resources for their funds. Therefore, they are likely not to 2010 with a significant increase. Probably the fundraising will come back on the road until 2011, BVK manager said Hoeppner.
