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Amid an aging population and a growing role for private equity (PE) in the care of older adults, this paper studies how PE ownership affects U.S. nursing homes using patient-level Medicare data. We show that PE ownership leads to a patient cohort with lower health risk. However, after instrumenting for the patient-nursing home match, we find that PE ownership increases mortality by 11%. Declines in measures of patient well-being, nurse staffing, and compliance with care standards help to explain the mortality effect. Overall, we conclude that PE has nuanced effects with adverse outcomes for a subset of patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies how private equity creates value and its consequences for consumer welfare in the insurance industry, where PE investments grew tenfold following the financial crisis. PE firms add value through regulatory and tax arbitrage that increases profits relative to their non-PE counterparts. Crucially, the impact on consumer welfare is nuanced: in the short run, consumers benefit from more favorably priced products. But the arbitrage strategy also exposes them to more risk, as annual expected losses scaled by capital buffers rise by 50 percentage points. This creates the possibility of consumer harm in the event of a downturn. Authors have furnished an Internet Appendix , which is available on the Oxford University Press Web site next to the link to the final published paper online. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: In the 2023 National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) match, there were 554 unfilled emergency medicine (EM) positions before the Supplemental Offer and Acceptance Program (SOAP). We sought to describe features of EM programs that participated in the match and the association between select program characteristics and unfilled positions. Methods: The primary outcome measures included the proportion of positions filled in relation to state and population density, hospital ownership type, and physician employment model. Secondary outcome measures included comparing program-specific attributes between filled and unfilled programs, including original accreditation type, year of original accreditation, the total number of approved training positions, length of training, urban-rural designation, hospital size by number of beds, resident-to-bed ratio, and the percentage of disproportionate share patients seen. Results: The NRMP Match had 276 unique participating EM programs with 554 unfilled positions. Six states offered 52% of the total NRMP positions available. Five states were associated with two-thirds of the unfilled positions. Public hospitals had a statistically significant higher match rate (88%) when compared to non-profit and for-profit hospitals, which had match rates of 80% and 75%, respectively (P < 0.001). Programs with faculty employed by a health system had the highest match rate of 87%, followed by clinician partnerships at 79% and private equity groups at 68% (P < 0.001 overall and between all subgroups). Conclusion: The 2023 match in EM saw increased rates in the number of residency positions and programs that did not fill before the SOAP. Public hospitals had higher match rates than for-profit or non-profit hospitals. Residency programs that employed academic faculty through the hospital or health system were associated with higher match rates.

Recent studies on agency problems in private equity fueled the suspicion that fund managers strategically manipulate performance estimates around fundraising times. While these studies use aggregated portfolio data, this paper offers the first analysis of "window dressing" in private equity based on deal-level performance. In contrast to previous findings of a smoking gun at the fund level, I do not find any evidence of inflated performance at the deal level. Fund performance peaks are driven by a cohort effect whereby late investments are made under pressure before fundraising and have lower returns than those made earlier in the fund's life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examine the role of non-venture private equity (PE) firms as intermediaries in the market for corporate assets. We argue that, in order to create and capture value by acquiring established businesses and selling them to corporate buyers, PE firms must possess at least one of three potential advantages: (a) they must be able to identify businesses that are currently undervalued (valuation advantage), (b) they must be able to enhance the intrinsic value of the business (governance advantage), or (c) they must be able to match the business to a more synergistic corporate owner than is immediately available (timing advantage). We discuss why, and under what conditions, PE firms may thus have an advantage in buying, owning, and selling businesses, and derive a set of propositions predicting which targets PE firms are most likely to pursue. Our study thus offers a comprehensive yet contingent theory of non-venture PE, developing an integrated value-based framework to explain this important and growing phenomenon. In doing so, we also offer new insights into the role of intermediaries in strategic factor markets, especially the market for the buying and selling of businesses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To compare appointment availability and wait times between private equity-owned and non-private equity-owned urology clinics for 2 common urologic complaints. We identified all PE-owned urology clinic locations as of June 2022 (n = 390). For each PE-owned location, a geographically matched, non-PE-owned clinic was identified. Each office was called using a "secret shopper" method with a standardized script, requesting an appointment on behalf of their Medicare-aged father for evaluation of gross hematuria or elevated prostate-specific antigen (PSA). The primary outcome was appointment availability, and the secondary outcome was wait time until soonest appointment. PE-owned and non-PE-owned clinics treated the presenting complaints with similar frequency (gross hematuria: 85% vs 88%, P =.3, elevated PSA: 93% vs 94%, P =.5). Wait time in days until the next available appointment was similar for PE-owned clinics compared to non-PE clinics for both complaints (gross hematuria: 16 vs 13, P =.06, elevated PSA: 18 vs 19, P =.7). If available, the time in days until the soonest next appointment with an advanced practice provider was also similar between PE-owned and non-PE clinics (gross hematuria: 13 vs 11, P =.07, elevated PSA: 13 vs 12, P =.6). Overall, there were no large-scale differences in access to outpatient urologic care between PE-owned clinics and non-PE-owned clinics. Access to care in PE-owned clinics is likely clinically similar to geographic-matched controls for Medicare patients with gross hematuria or elevated PSA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate a potential primary effect of leveraged buyouts (LBOs) by private equity (PE) on peers in the same industry using data on US public‐to‐private LBO transactions between 1985 and 2016. We use a network‐based instrumental variable approach to account for potential endogeneity concerns. Our findings indicate that the LBOs by PEs matter for peer firms' performance and corporate strategy relative to nonpeer firms. Our study supports a learning factor hypothesis, but we find no evidence to support the conjecture that peers lose due to the increased competitiveness of the LBO target. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What happens to companies that file for an initial public offering (IPO), but withdraw and do not list? How long does the post‐IPO outcome take? These questions are investigated by analysing market, firm and offer characteristics of 334 withdrawn IPOs in Europe between 2001 and 2015. The majority of withdrawn IPOs is engaged in M&A, only few file for a second time IPO. These post‐IPO withdrawal outcomes happen shortly after the IPO filing. Private equity and venture capital‐backed firms are more frequently engaging in M&A or trading. The evidence suggests that the IPO may be used as a marketing mechanism, being one of several alternatives of exit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Covering two-thirds of the ocean and half of the planet's surface, the high seas are increasingly the focus of commercial activity and conservation ambitions. Contrary to narratives of a lawless frontier, they are governed by a dense network of sectoral institutions for shipping, fisheries, and other industries, although these collectively deal with conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity in a fragmented and uneven manner. These gaps were the subject of nearly 20 years of negotiation, resulting in the adoption of the Agreement on Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction in June 2023. The Agreement was designed to address access and benefit sharing associated with marine genetic resources; the establishment of area-based management tools such as marine protected areas, Environmental Impact Assessments, and capacity building; and the transfer of marine technology. Achieving coherence across public and private governance mechanisms will be a significant challenge as human activity increases on the high seas, but it is key to achieving ocean sustainability goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While previous literature on international innovation ecosystems (IIEs) construction focuses on the leading role of high-tech corporations, the intermediaries which were thought of as playing auxiliary and supporting roles have long been ignored. This study intends to fill this gap by exploring how an intermediary organisation initiates and constructs an IIE as a focal actor from the perspective of social capital. Combining a longitudinal case study and grounded theory, we investigate the construction process of the China–Israel innovation ecosystem established by Infinity Group (IG), an Israeli private equity firm with a base in China that acts as a leading role in connecting innovation cooperation between the two countries. Our findings show that structural capital acts as a fundamental element from the emergence of the ecosystem to its mature stage. Specifically, this study suggests that culture embeddedness influences the diffusion of trust, and trust further leads the network change to a small-world structure, during which intermediaries can act as leading actors to overcome the challenges during the IIE building process. Our study enriches the literature on international innovation ecosystem and provides some practical implications for the construction of intermediary-oriented IIEs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research paper examines the performance of leading private equity firms as compared to prominent companies within the S&P 500. By analyzing specific case studies, the paper illustrates the unique strategies employed by successful private equity firms and how these strategies yield varying performance levels compared to traditional public companies. The research highlights differences in operational management, financial leverage, and market dynamics that contribute to these outcomes. Furthermore, the paper reviews existing literature to contextualize the findings within broader trends in private equity and public markets, ultimately providing insights for investors and policymakers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Press reports have indicated that firms frequently underprice restricted stock and employee stock options. I test for underpricing of stock and options. Design/methodology/approach: I examined a sample of 5,333 private firm stock and option issuances between 1985 and 2017. I tested for underpricing using two approaches: assuming investors have no special market-timing ability and assuming instead they have perfect market-timing ability. Findings: I find evidence of widespread stock and option underpricing by private firms before they go public reflecting large discounts that exceed reasonable compensation for lack of marketability. Unreported underpricing is more frequent in the last pre-IPO private equity transactions that offer the last opportunity to give such discounts before the stock is publicly traded, but the discounts are greater in the earlier pre-IPO transactions where unreported discounts are presumably tougher for the SEC to detect. Underpricing is still detected even when the actual DLOMs are tested against a benchmark that assumes investors have perfect market-timing ability. Research limitations/implications: Firms frequently underprice restricted stock and employee stock options. Firms tend to underprice stock options more frequently than restricted stock, but restricted stock tends to be priced at deeper discounts when recipients are assumed not to have any special market-timing ability. Practical implications: Private firms issue restricted stock and options as incentive compensation. Lowballing the valuation transfers wealth from outside stockholders to employees/insiders. Wealth transfers take place through the issuance of equity claims to employees/insiders before firms go public. I found that more than a quarter of the DLOMs exceed the theoretical maximum by, on average, between 16% (median) and 20% (mean). This finding raises two questions worthy of investigation. First, to what extent do the frequency and magnitude of DLOMs above the theoretical maximum depend on whether a board of directors obtains an independent appraisal of a stock's fair market value? Second, if DLOMs above the theoretical maximum are observed even when the stock is independently appraised, how do appraisers justify such large DLOMs? Social implications: The wealth transfers that take place through the issuance of equity claims to employees/insiders before firms go public benefit employees/insiders at the expense of outside shareholders. Originality/value: My paper is the first to furnish evidence of widespread stock and option underpricing by private firms before they go public; demonstrate that the unreported underpricing is more frequent in the last pre-IPO private equity transactions that offer the last opportunity to give such discounts before the stock is publicly traded and show that the discounts are greater in the earlier pre-IPO transactions where unreported discounts are presumably tougher for the SEC to detect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research Summary: From the perspective of the divesting firm, do divestitures to private equity (PE) acquirers perform differently from divestitures to corporate acquirers? If so, why? This question‐based, empirical study shows that on average, divestitures to PE acquirers correlate with lower divesting firms' shareholder returns than divestitures to corporate acquirers. The study explores whether these lower returns when divesting to PE acquirers are explained by the differences in PE acquirers' distinct value creation strategies when it comes to target selection, ownership, or transaction timing. The results reveal that divesting firms' lower shareholder returns when divesting to PE acquirers are more likely correlated with differences in value creation by PE acquirers due to their distinct ownership and transaction timing strategies, but not their selection strategies. Managerial Summary: Private equity (PE) firms are prominent buyers of corporate divestitures, and PE firms' strategies for creating value when acquiring divested businesses tend to differ from those of corporate buyers. Yet the performance implications, from the perspective of the divesting firm, of divesting a business to a PE acquirer versus a corporate acquirer are not clear. In this study, I explore the differences in returns to firms divesting to PE acquirers versus those divesting to corporate acquirers. First, on average, divesting firms' returns are lower when divesting to PE acquirers. Second, these lower returns are more likely to occur when the PE acquirer may be expecting to create less value, or when firms choose to divest at a suboptimal time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A dual holder simultaneously owns (private) debt and equity in the same firm. Private debt has a tax advantage, a positive cashflow, which incentivizes its use. This cashflow leads to a lower net cost of debt, which again reduces default risk as well as the cost of external debt. The usual trade‐off between tax benefits and bankruptcy costs is altered. Debt priority affects both financing and default decisions. We find that an enterprise‐value maximizing firm should issue senior, external debt and junior, private debt, rather than debt with pari‐passu priority. Our analysis further highlights that tax authorities can effectively curtail the tax‐motivated use of private debt through straightforward measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores the significance of contracts in private equity applications, particularly in addressing Shariah compliance concerns inherent in traditional private equity structures. Private equity plays a crucial role in funding and nurturing SMEs, aligning with equity-based activities that are conducive to Islamic finance principles. Using a qualitative Grounded Theory approach, the study involves interviews with various stakeholders in the financial industry. Grounded theory is an iterative and inductive method that systematically analyses data to uncover patterns and themes, generating hypotheses or theories derived directly from the data. The study identifies murabahah, ijarah, mudarabah, and musharakah as suitable contracts for private equity applications. These findings illuminate opportunities for financial industry participants, particularly SMEs, to innovate and access funding through private equity avenues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explains the effects originated by the massive entrance of foreign capital in the ceramic tile district of Castellon (Spain). Cross-fertilizing multinational acquisitions and industrial districts' literature, and using mix-methods on a focal case study, our article explores the effects that those multinationals have on districts, and whether the type of multinationals (financially-oriented vs industrial) presents different impacts on a focal industrial district. Our results point out that the massive entrance of foreign capital alters the local system. Overall, positive perceived attitudes are evidenced, along with negative attitudes associated with potential risks of lack of local-embedded ownership and the reduction of local cooperative ties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Defense contractors play an essential role in US security operations. Among other responsibilities, contractors manufacture arms, manage logistics, analyze intelligence, and carry out cybersecurity operations. Historically, defense contractors were either publicly traded corporations or privately owned companies. The past two decades, however, have seen a major shift in the ownership structure of the US defense industry. Private equity firms—once niche actors in the US national security marketplace—have carried out over 1,500 deals involving defense contractors since 2000. This study employs a mixed-methods research design to assess the effects of private equity investment on the financial stability of the US defense industry. Using data on over 8,000 defense contractors, the inquiry finds that contractors with private equity backing experience bankruptcy at higher rates than contractors with no prior private equity investment. In addition, the study evaluates private equity activity in the military satellite services market—a field of growing importance in the strategically important domain of outer space. The inquiry's findings have notable international security implications. Given the US' role as a lynchpin in numerous alliances around the world, higher rates of bankruptcy among defense contractors have the potential to affect the security of the United States and its allies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is an interview with Clifford S. Asness, the founder of AQR Capital Management, LLC. Asness discusses his firm's investment strategy, which is based on economic theory and supported by statistical evidence. He emphasizes the need for a disciplined approach to investing and avoiding data mining. Asness also highlights the key performance indicators he prioritizes, such as separating alpha from beta and focusing on risk-adjusted returns. He discusses the role of risk management and technology in asset management strategies. Finally, he addresses the challenge of balancing client expectations with market dynamics and investment performance. Asness also discusses the importance of sharing research and insights with investors, the influence of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors on investment strategies, and the impact of global economic trends on investment decisions. He emphasizes the importance of diversification to mitigate risk and reflects on his experiences that have shaped his approach to investment management. He offers advice to aspiring Chief Investment Officers (CIOs), emphasizing the role of luck and the importance of learning from challenging times. [Extracted from the article]

To the best of our knowledge, this article is the first to present a conceptual approach for a private market-based direct index. Based on the growing data availability of capital table management vendors, the authors propose a new way of determining a start-up's fair value. Using hedonic methods as an enabler, the authors consider changing value-determining components, thus creating a dynamic valuation model. Finally, the authors outline several implications for the index constituents, such as increased information efficiency and benefits from decreasing capital costs. In this way, the authors introduce a new niche for direct indexing (DI) applications that pressures indexing vendors and creates extended investment diversification opportunities for preliminary institutional investors. This allows the creation of major benchmarks that act as private equity (PE) proxies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study explores the characteristics of worldwide acquisitions of private-equity-backed (PE) private companies. It examines the impact of the subprime crisis, the acquirer's choice of target, and the implications on deal value. Research Design & Methods: This study uses deal-level data on worldwide PE-backed private company acquisitions that were completed between 2000 and 2017. Research methods to test the hypotheses include data visualization, comparative analysis, and regression analysis. Findings: Data visualization indicates that North America was the most popular region for PE-backed private company acquisitions, followed by Europe and Asia. Industry sectors such as the services sector, the technology sector, the manufacturing sector, and the healthcare, and biotechnology sectors were popular. Comparative analysis indicates that financial acquirers preferred targets with larger revenues, larger core profits and operational profitability. Regression analysis indicates that acquirer characteristics such as acquirer type and experience levels, and deal characteristics such as deal location and percentage of stake acquired influence deal size. However, target company information and performance supersede acquirer characteristics. The subprime crisis in 2008 was a minor deterrent in the acquisition activity for both financial buyers and strategic buyers resulting in larger value deals with targets with smaller revenues. Implications & Recommendations: This study provides insights into the importance and relevance of signals in PE-backed private company acquisitions by examining the characteristics of such acquisitions, the acquirer preferences, and the determinants of deal value. Private companies are less visible and less transparent as compared to public companies, making them obscure and difficult to value. Therefore, strategic acquirers and financial acquirers rely on signals to assess the viability of the potential target, with PE backing serving as a notable certification. This study indicates that PE-backing influences deal value and acquirer's preferences. Despite the 2008 financial crisis influencing acquisition activity, both sets of acquirers were able to leverage their experiences into their respective acquisitions. Higher total and relevant experience seemed to work favourably for acquirers, who profited from increased bargaining power. Contribution & Value Added: Firstly, this study enriches and adds to the knowledge of the literature on acquisitions, particularly private company acquisitions and the role played by PE in the same. Next, this study adds to the literature on the subprime crisis and the impact of the crisis on acquisition activity. Further, this article provides insights into strategic decision-making by the two dominant acquirers-strategic acquirers, and financial acquirers- when they are limited by a target pool and the interpretation of signals by the target. Finally, the examination of PE-backed private company acquisitions adds to the study and practice of entrepreneurial finance by examining the role of PE as a signal to deal with quality to encourage acquisitions of privately held targets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the impact of private equity fund managers' (GPs') ESG disclosure on fundraising. To this end, a sample of global private equity and venture capital funds that completed fundraising between 2020 and 2022 is employed. Our findings indicate that an increase in ESG disclosure by GPs is associated with an increase in fundraising. This indicates that GPs' ESG disclosure diminishes information asymmetry and has a favorable impact on fundraising. Conversely, the level of ESG disclosure among limited partners (LPs) has no significant impact on the relationship between GPs' ESG disclosure level and fundraising. The findings of this study have significant implications for private equity stakeholders, including GPs, given the current context of declining investment demand due to rising interest rates, recessionary concerns, poor performance and tighter regulations on private equity management. In this environment, ESG disclosure is becoming increasingly challenging for private equity firms to utilize as a fundraising strategy.

The corporatization of health care in the United States has forced us to confront society's moral expectations of the industry, which serves uniquely vulnerable consumers. Health care has become increasingly more lucrative, attracting private equity ("PE") investment, specifically in private physicians' practices. Physicians find PE transactions appealing because physicians have difficulty competing with large hospital systems and complying with expansive regulatory requirements. The attention given by PE to health care has raised concerns regarding the tension between the expected priorities of PE firms and health care. Additionally, the nature of PE investments through roll-ups of smaller companies has regulators worried that they cannot control PE's involvement in the industry. The Federal Trade Commission ('FTC') is one regulatory agency that has explicitly addressed PE investments through revisions to its Merger Guidelines to ensure PE does not slip through its grasp. As PE roll-ups are a type of health care consolidation, this Comment will compare the FTC's past efforts to regulate hospital mergers with its potential future efforts to regulate PE investment in health care under the 2023 Merger Guidelines. The Comment also states how the 2023 Merger Guidelines still fall short of effectively regulating PE investment in health care and how healthcare-specific guidelines could improve their effectiveness. It additionally argues that it may be best to let PE investment continue until the market self-corrects. The Comment provides supplementary methods to undermine the attractiveness of PE investment for physicians, which would decrease the frequency of these transactions and speed up the economic self-correcting process. The various paths forward further support the Comments overarching argument that, as it currently stands, the FTC's antitrust laws are not effective in regulating PE investment in health care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article addresses the growing concentration of political and economic power in the hands of a small number of index and private equity funds, referred to as the "problem of twelve." Topics include the historical shift of corporate influence since the 1970s, the rise of institutional investors and their political involvement, and the increasing tension between private equity and public companies.

This paper offers the first systematic evidence on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) disclosures provided by a large global sample of private equity (PE) firms. Using historical websites from 2000 to 2022, we develop and validate a novel dictionary‐based measure of voluntary PE firm ESG disclosures. Descriptive statistics reveal an increasing time trend in these disclosures, with social topics becoming as important as environmental topics recently. Multivariate analyses show that the demand for ESG information from fund investors is a significant determinant of PE firms' ESG disclosures. Leveraging data on PE firms' portfolio companies, we document that more PE firm ESG disclosures are associated with better ESG outcomes at the portfolio company level, suggesting that voluntary ESG disclosures align with real actions for the average PE firm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper extends previous research to investigate the determinants of the operating performance of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) backed by private equity (PE). The paper is based on a sample of 208 unique private equity-backed firms operating at the European level. A multivariate linear regression model is estimated, in which the private equity-backed firms’ operating performance—as measured by ROA, Revenues/Total Assets, and EBIT/Total Assets—is a function of a variety of factors. These include whether or not the firm is an SME, the presence of family shareholders, and various features specific to the expertise of the private equity investor, as well as the industry, country, and years covered. The analysis is limited to private equity deals that occurred in the European Region between 2005 and 2017. According to the results, the effectiveness of private equity in improving the operating performance of target companies in the three years post-investment is impacted by whether or not the backed firm is an SME. This research paper aims to further existing publications on the link between the involvement of the private equity investor and the status of the backed firm as an SME. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With spring in full swing, medtech business owners thinking about selling may be curious about the current buyer landscape. Lets begin by stating the obvious: Potential purchasers could include industry [...]

Private equity firms are becoming significant players in the mergers and acquisitions marketplace. Increasingly, buyers are interested in obtaining less than 100 percent of the target corporation and are also keen on using rollover equity to defer tax to the seller and provide additional financing for the buyer. Finally, buyers also wish to obtain a stepup in the basis of the assets of the target. A Type F reorganization involving a state law conversion of an S corporation into a limited liability company (LLC) can provide harmony between buyers and sellers in these transactions. This article will examine the technique and will offer practical guidance to practitioners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using a proprietary data set on international private equity activity, we study the determinants of buyout investments across 61 countries and 19 industries over the period of 1990 to 2017. We find that countries with cyclically strong economies, more active stock and credit markets, and better rule of law experience more buyout activity. Countries also receive more buyout capital following investor protection and contract enforcement reforms. The set of determinants we identify appear somewhat unique to buyout investments, because other forms of investment such as foreign direct investment, gross capital formation, investments in R&D, and M&A activity do not respond similarly to these factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We estimate unsmoothed private equity net asset values (NAVs) at weekly frequency for individual funds. Using simulations and large samples of buyout and venture funds, we show that our method yields superior estimates of NAVs relative to simple approaches based on extrapolation of reported NAVs. The market beta of an average buyout (venture) fund is around 1.0 (1.4), and the total risk is 33 |$\%$| (40 |$\%$|⁠) per year. The risk-return profile of the funds varies significantly over time and across funds. Risk-taking and reporting quality appear to persist by manager. Authors have furnished an Internet Appendix , which is available on the Oxford University Press Web site next to the link to the final published paper online. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the prevailing focus on the public markets, private companies represent approximately half of the world economy, if not more. This is a descriptive article presenting a summary of data and results from the 2024 Private Capital Markets Report, which is the product of the annual private capital markets survey. The annual survey was launched in 2009 and examines the behavior and trends of senior lenders, asset-based lenders, mezzanine funds, private equity groups, venture capital firms, angel investors, privately-held businesses, investment bankers, business brokers, limited partners, and business appraisers. Most of the survey panelists are based in the United States of America, but this is not a requirement. The data set also includes many panelists outside of the U.S. There was a total of 1,143 respondents represented in the 2024 survey. An empirical result of this article is that we test the theory that the recent return of warrants to mezzanine deals is associated with a higher interest rate environment. We find evidence supporting that association. These results may be helpful for academics and practitioners forecasting mezzanine activity and deal terms.

This study examines the possible emergence of a Middle Technology Trap (MTT) in U.S.-China strategic competition through the lens of the Global Financial Network (GFN) and the Global Innovation Network (GIN). By conducting doctrinal analysis, theoretically informed case studies, and in-depth interviews, we offer a granular study into how the U.S. has been weaponizing its leading position in the GFN to affect China's level of participation in the GIN. Our findings reveal three U.S. tactics to induce the MTT with China: first, leveraging U.S. private equity and venture capital (PEVC) to enhance its technology advantage over China; second, pushing U.S. investors to withdraw from China's PEVC market, thereby restricting Chinese access to American capital; and third, inducing Advanced Business Services (ABS) supporting innovation and global business to cease or reduce their operations in China, thereby increasing intermediation costs for innovation. Although Chinese government-guided funds (GGFs) have managed to partially mitigate the "funding gap" from the departure of American PEVCs, they have yet to assume the brokerage role previously played by American PEVCs in both the GIF and the GIN. As such, our study contributes to a better understanding and theoretical advancements of the MTT by linking up the scholarship of innovation and finance with financial statecraft. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Under what conditions can the state discipline private equity firms into delivering the investment required to meet the coming needs of industrial transformation? States have sought to crowd in private capital to finance industrial development, but the results have so far been less than satisfactory. Prevailing accounts of financial industry power largely characterise an arms-length state-finance relationship that has unfolded in private-led markets where private equity firms have contributed to the secular growth in non-productive economic activity. This article problematises the assumption of private-led markets and argues that state-led markets present a counterfactual in which the disbursement of public money entails strict policy discipline and tight embedding between the state and private equity firms, which provides the conditions for them to emerge as unlikely champions of industrial policy. Two cases of co-investment between Chinese and European sovereign wealth funds demonstrate the power dynamics at play. Where PE firms in the Sino-Irish co-investment facilitated the international scaling of Irish firms in China, the PE firms operating in Europe failed to embed Chinese firms into regional supply chains in the Sino-Belgian co-investment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As space becomes increasingly congested, states operating in close proximity to other states is an inevitability. Strategically valuable space will become more crowded, and naturally, states will try to find creative solutions to fit more satellites into a constrained volume of space. As the commercial market begins to eclipse the defense market in the global space economy, there is a current impetus to normalize operating in close proximity to other satellites, also known as Rendezvous and Proximity Operations (RPO) activities. Normalizing RPO activities helps each state better understand intentions and ultimately avoid miscalculations that would escalate tensions or, worse--start a shooting war in space. As more states become space powers, all of humanity will have to wrestle with this problem. It stands to reason that the United States is best situated to lead the international community in the development of standards of conduct while conducting RPO activities and demonstrating to the world that not only can RPO activities be done, but they can be done safely and responsibly. This first step will improve space sustainability by enabling RPO-enabled commercial ventures to remove debris and extend satellite mission life. For the first time in history, the preponderance of the space market is predominately commercial. Now is the time to leverage a louder private equity voice to define safe and responsible space behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research paper presents a comprehensive bibliometric analysis and systematic review of literature of exit timing and exit routes within the domains of private equity and venture capital investments. Utilizing advanced methodological analysis such as VOS viewer and MS Excel, an in-depth examination through Statistical Keyword Analysis, publication patterns, prominent authors, and influential sources of publication were identified. Through multiple rounds of filtering of key words and data mining, the key geographical trends, collaboration patterns that provided key valuable insights into co-authorships within prominent research clusters were extracted and analyzed. Moreover, in this study focus themes and regions of interest of those clusters that contributed to a holistic understanding of the dynamic research landscape in the thriving field of PE-VC investments were categorized. Our study provides a better understanding of PE-VC Exit field and based on the results also provide a synopsis of future research avenues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This cross-sectional study estimates the geographic penetration of private equity–owned outpatient mental health and substance use disorder practices across the US. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examine whether the increased quantity of public information has a spillover impact on equity sales by private industry peer firms. To capture an increase in the quantity of public peer information, we use corporate spin‐offs as these events cause an increase in the number of independent public entities that mandatorily disclose financial reports. Using a unique dataset on private firms' equity sales extracted from the Securities and Exchange Commission filings pursuant to Regulation D, we find that private industry peers sell more equity following spin‐offs, but the increase is not statistically significant. When we divide our spin‐off sample based on the availability of segment information on subsidiaries before spin‐offs, however, we find a significant an increase in private firms' equity sales after spin‐offs when parent firms did not previously disclose segment reports. Additional test results suggest that our inferences regarding private industry peers are not entirely explained by an industry‐wide demand shock. Overall, we contribute to the literature by establishing an information spillover channel, incremental to the effect of common industry shocks, flowing from the public to private markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Large-scale industrialization, growth and development have come at the cost of severe environmental degradation, primarily measured in terms of carbon dioxide emissions. Apart from the several measures taken to reduce enviornmental degradation, provision of private capital is a necessity apart from the public capital. There is a debate on impact of carbon dioxide emissions with increase in affluence, technology, population and renewable energy. The purpose of the study is to look into the role of private equity investment on renewable energy and technological patents. Design/methodology/approach: The study extends the use of stochastic impact by regression on population, affluence and technology model to include another factor for investments and capital, i.e. private equity along with renewable energy, population, technology and GDP growth on carbon emissions for the BRICS countries. The time period for the study is from 2002 to 2021, and the relationship between the variables has been tested using pooled mean group/autoregressive distributed lag, fully modified ordinary least squares and panel quantile regression. Findings: First, the results depict a log-run relationship between the variables across the panel using cointegration. Private equity investments do not have a significant impact on carbon emissions. The study proposes important policy implications. There are two schools of thought on the impact of private equity on carbon emissions. For example, inherently private equity investments come with higher stakes and a shorter holding period because of which their primary focus remains on having higher returns instead of responsible investing. However, as private equity adds up to capital, which leads to an increase in productivity and eventually higher economic growth, this could affect carbon emissions. This study supports the first thought. Additionally, renewable energy also affects carbon emissions positively. The policymakers should look into the role and intent of the private equity investors in green investments and invest in technologies and patents that can lead to energy consumption. Originality/value: The paper is the first of its kind, to the best of the authors' knowledge, to look into the impact of private equity on renewable energy and technological patents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors examine the ESG practices of the world's largest private equity firms. They find that ESG practices and their corresponding disclosures significantly lag those of publicly traded industrial firms. Approximately 58% of the top private equity firms disclose zero information about their ESG practices, and two-thirds of those that disclose have uninformative ESG information. Although 39% of firms have activities related to the S dimension of ESG, only 19% of firms have at least 10% women on their boards or as top executives. The authors create a comprehensive ESG score, including subscores for E, S, and G. Buyout funds, the number of PE employees, and listing status positively affect our ESG score. IRRs do not predict overall ESG scores but are related to higher social scores. As evidence of greenwashing, 71% of firms are signatories to ESG initiatives that are easy to implement and subject to lower accountability. On the other hand, 15% of firms are signatories to high-quality ESG frameworks, and their commitment is reflected by an increased workforce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of Corporate Governance & Research & Development Studies is the property of FrancoAngeli srl and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Using monthly data from 1997 to 2023, we construct mean-variance optimized portfolios of common university endowment asset classes, including domestic equity, international equity, global bonds, hedge funds, private equity, real estate, and natural resources. We find substantial variation in optimal allocations to these asset classes across subperiods. Some asset classes are substantially more persistent in receiving allocations than others, while some asset classes rarely receive sizable allocations at all. Our results highlight the relevance of asset allocation in portfolio performance and may inform future decisions by institutional investors and endowment portfolio managers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]