Erin Griffith

I'm confused. I hear all kinds of doom and gloom about how bankrupt companies can't find debtor-in-possession (DIP) financing. They'll be forced into Chapter 7 liquidation! Everybody panic! But then I see stories like this, where lenders insist, "By no means is the DIP market really dead." For example, Kevin Phillips of Bank of America says that putting new money into the DIP market is "exciting" at the moment, Dealscape reports. So what is it? DIP or no DIP? I asked a mid-market lender to clear things up. For starters, there are different approaches to DIP lending. There's defensive lending, which is when you're already exposed

**Updated with source and spokesperson comments below.** The secondary intermediary field isn't a crowded one. Until recently, your advisory options for unloading LP interests on the secondary market were limited to three established players: Cogent Partners, UBS, and Probitas Partners. It makes sense, since prior to last year, the demand for their services hasn't overwhelmed the market's existing players. But now, with distressed LPs selling at deep discounts, there's a renewed interest in the asset class by anyone and everyone, including, you guessed it, the investment banks.

10 Questions: To ask your fund of funds manager. (Corgentum) Lucy Kellaway: "I have fallen into recession's web of fear." (FT) Saturday Night Live: Bernie Madoff's Superbowl party. (WSF) And also: Daniel Gross doesn't think Citi should break its Mets contract. (Moneybox) Just Sayin: Don't Seek Exile In B-School (Scottdig)

New York fund-of-funds manager Siguler Guff is nearing the end of fundraising for two vehicles, according to recent regulatory filings and sources close to the firm. Siguler Guff has accumulated $914.682 million in commitments to its second BRIC fund-of-funds. The vehicle has a $1 billion target, which is a significant increase over its first BRIC fund vehicle. That fund, raised in March 2006, had $610 million in commitments. The fund's strategy is to invest in funds which target Brazil, Russia, India and China, with an emphasis on India and China. Patricia Dinneen, the fund's manager, declined to comment. Meanwhile, Siguler Guff also has secured around $2.3 billion in commitments for its third distressed fund-of-funds, which was being targeted at just $1.5 billion. A final close

Yucaipa Companies, the investment firm run by supermarket magnate Ron Burkle, is in the market with its second “American Alliance Fund,” according to a regulatory filing. To date, the fund has collected $1.52 billion in commitments. Meanwhile, a parallel fund called “American Alliance Parallel Fund II” has collected $462.5 million. Investors include New York City Employees' Retirement System, Teachers' Retirement System of the City of New York, and California Public Employees' Retirement System. CalPERS committed $400 million.

Must Read: PE "has yet to acknowledge what many of its investments probably are worth: little or nothing," Barons reports. And it's a good argument-PE pros are talking a lot about the buying opportunities, but how honest are they being about their crappy underwater mega-LBOs? (Baron's) Seriously: Kedrosky calls out CEOs ludicrous $1 dollar salary antics, which he says "mostly reminds employees how crazily overpaid the CEO was in the first place." (Daily Beast) PE Consolidation: Again, I disagree that PE firms will ever consolidate amongst themselves, but others seem to think they will. (FT) Good God: WWD reveals Bank of England's ridiculous dress codes, where female employees are required to wear makeup and heels. (The Cut)

One Down, 11 To Go: January M&A Snapshot from Thomson Reuters. (TR) Equity Private: Contemplates the future of Going Private. It doesn't have a lot of private equity in it. (Going Private) Did You Know? Philip Yea had his footprint on 3i's dismal earnings, but he also has a connection to Investcorp, the firm that got a ratings cut this week and reacted by firing the ratings agent. (Dealscape) Would This Work? Angry senator wants pay cap on Wall Street 'idiots' (CNN)

I guess that whole "infuriated" speech about ethics didn't apply to everything. Steve Schwarzman and crew have been served a lawsuit from the Financial Times for sharing the username for one online subscription for the entire firm, Cityfile reports. We know that Steve isn't cheap, so what does this say? Are times really that tough? From the report: Officials at the FT became a bit suspicious when they realized a very industrious Blackstone employee was accessing thousands of articles a day; a subsequent investigation turned up evidence Blackstone had been engaged in the fraud since as far back as 2002. The FT is now suing Blackstone for copyright infringement and violation of the computer fraud and abuse act. It's even worse when you find out that subscriptions cost all of, oh, $179 a year. View the entire document, via Cityfile, below:

Conventional wisdom says that the so-called “sin stocks” are counter-cyclical: When times get tough, people turn to vices like smoking, booze and porn. I’m skeptical of that theory, but plenty believe it wholeheartedly. There are PE firms that invest in alcohol, gaming, casino companies–there’s even a wine-focused mezzanine fund–but rarely do you see a firm […]

Half! Half of all SPACs lose value instantly. (SSRN via Abnormal Returns) Zombies Ahead: Brilliant use of technology. (Fox News) Finger Pointing: Why the world's economic leaders blame the catastrophe on the system instead of themselves. (Monkeybox) Down: The Stock market is taking private equity there right along with it. Just at a slower pace I suspect... (Bloomberg)