Private equity is a hot topic in this year’s elections. People are debating over what private equity is, who benefits from private equity, and how the private equity market is doing in today’s economy. At Dickinson Wright, our attorneys are aware of the challenges private equity investors face in today’s market.
“The goal of private equity funds is to buy, build and sell successful companies and make a return on investment for the funds’s investors, which incidentally, include institutional investors such as pension funds in insurance companies and, thus, indirectly individual investors like you and me,” says Richard Bolton, member and managing director of Dickinson Wright’s private equity practice.
The debate about these private equity funds has centered around one particular question: do private equity firms create jobs in today’s economy? According to a post in the Wall Street Journal’s Private Equity Beat, a recent survey out from McGladrey LLP states that out of the over 100 executives at middle market firms polled, 65.4% said there was an increase in employment within their portfolio companies.
The survey also states that in addition to reducing costs, the bulk of firms’ improvement plans are focused on expanding sales channels, introducing new products and services and emphasizing financial operations and reporting. Thus, private equity funds work hard to build businesses operationally, and are not the “financial engineers” they are often portrayed as.
Helping in this goal to buy, build and sell successful companies is Dickinson Wright’s group of private equity attorneys. Our attorneys not only handle private equity fund transactions, but also assist clients in the organization of private equity funds. The organization of a private equity fund is a complex, highly specialized project and Dickinson Wright is the only firm in Michigan which routinely does such work.
Currently, the private equity market is still rebounding from the 2008 recession but there are bright spots in the market.
“The private equity market is a lot more vibrant and healthier than people think in Michigan and Detroit,” says Richard. “It will continue to grow and mature since Michigan and Detroit have a lot of strong private equity players.”
To learn more about private equity, visit http://www.dickinson-wright.com/Private-Equity-Services.
