Private equity is losing its mystique
Investors want it to become more virtuous
THERE HAS long been an element of the gentlemen’s club about the private-equity (PE) industry. It is still predominantly male. It has a buccaneering history filled with mystique. It cherishes discretion. And its fees are exorbitant compared with the services it provides. If anything covid-19 has made it even more exclusive. Despite what Preqin, a data gatherer, says was a slowdown in fundraising during the pandemic as in-person meetings stopped, the firms with the longest pedigrees have had the least trouble raising money, doing deals and earning bumper profits.
This article appeared in the Business section of the print edition under the headline “Losing the mystique”
Business May 8th 2021
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From the May 8th 2021 edition
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