Erin Griffith

In 2008, credit froze up but we still had lots of leftover boom-era fun to ogle at. The first half of the year saw plenty of MAC drama from mega-buyouts gone bad, and the second half, well you know what happened then. But in 2009 what did we get? Frozen credit, frozen deal-doing, frozen fundraising, a pile of never-ending pay-to-play crap, and an even bigger pile of hopeful, optimistic punditry. YAWN! So here’s hoping 2010 will be rife with heated M&A auctions, warmer fundraising markets, IPOs-a-blazing, the end of pay-to-play, and realistic punditry. Cheers! Capping off our year-end series, we asked PE pros for some reflections on 2009 and predictions for 2010. Here are some of their answers. For more year-end reflection, go here. To chime in, GPs can send responses here.

The following six fundraising updates have been culled from SEC filings: Oaktree Capital has raised $425.8 million to invest in mortgage-backed securities through the government's PPIP plan. The fund, called Oaktree PPIP Private Fund, L.P., has 39 investors, which includes Arctic Slope PPIP Private Fund GP, L.P., a contractor which represents the Alaska Native Arctic Slope Inupiat. The $425.8 million likely includes capital raised for a parallel offshore fund called Oaktree PPIP Private Fund (Cayman), L.P., which accumulated $181 million in commitments, according to a separate SEC filing. This one has been reported already, but in case you missed it: Littlejohn & Co. has held a second close on its fourth fund with $616.5 million in commitments. The firm is using Park Hill as a placement agent. The firm held a first close in September with around $400 million. The fund has a curious target figure of $1,323,529,412, which some reports have said is a hard cap while the actual target is $1.25 billion. If the target is reached, the fund would be a significant jump for Littlejohn & Co., which is coming off of an $850 million third fund. That vehicle initially had only $650 million in commitments, but raised an additional $200 million in 2006. According to information from Oregon Public Employee's Retirement Fund, Littlejohn Fund II has returned 1.48x its money.

Cautionary Tales: The bankers who wouldn't say sorry. (FT) Wow: This profile of Raj Rajaratnam, "The Man Who Wired Silicon Valley" is a bit shocking. Literally-he paid an employee 5K to voluntarily be stunned by a Taser. (WSJ) Unusual Focus: Curious and Curiouser. London-based Calunius Capital is raising a private equity fund earmarked for investments in commercial lawsuits claiming. (IDD) The New Buyout: How the financial crisis is changing private equity, by Partners Group. (Partners Group) Lowbrow Highlights: CNBC's top videos of 2009. (CNBC) Sourcing Deal Flow: USA Today profiles a defense consulting firm made up of former officers, many of which already have connections to buyout firms. (USA Today) Predictions: Always futile, yet we always do them. Naked Capitalism has some 2010 insights from Bruce Krasting, including Geithner's replacement, AIG's future and midterm election results. (Naked Capitalism)

Here's a fun debunk: Yesterday Boston Business Journal reported that Riverside Partners had collected $85.6 million in commitments toward its fourth fund, citing an SEC filing for Riverside Fund IV Offshore LP. Technically, Boston Business Journal wasn't inaccurate, but that's kinda like calling Warren Buffett a millionaire. The Boston-based buyout firm indeed raised $85.6 million for its offshore fund, but everyone knows an offshore fund has an "onshore" counterpart. And that fund, in a separate SEC filing, gathered $292.36 million in commitments from 34 investors. So Riverside Partners has $377 million in total commitments. The filing lists a target of $314.365 million in commitments, leaving $22 million yet to be raised. Regardless of whether the offshore fund counts toward that total, Riverside Partners has far surpassed its initial target of $250 million, which peHUB reported in July.

How Close Were You Paying Attention in 2009? Check out the New Yorker's Shouts and Murmurs quiz. (New Yorker) Overused Phrase of the Year: "New Normal." Lauren Silva Laughlin writes that LBO barons are preparing for a new normal. (Breakingviews) Private Equity To Save Us From Banana Republic? Not the retail chain, an actual banana republic, which is getting some help from buyout shops. (Guardian) Homewreckin: Mark Zuckerburg may have started Facebook as a way to get ladies, but now it's being used as a tool in divorces. One in five divorce petitions mentions the social networking site. (Techdirt)

While news reports are calling the "00s" anything from a lost decade to one to skip, to one without authority to just plain sucky. For private equity, the aughts could not have been more exciting (that is, until around mid-2007). The industry ballooned in the face of low interest rates and lax lending, leading to record breaking dealmaking that won’t be matched for a very long time. Globally, the top ten buyout deals of all time occurred between 2006 and 2008. When they were struck, the buyout barons behind them were on top of the world (or, Masters of the Universe, if you prefer). But of course, when the good times ended, private equity was not immune. The last two years have been a wake-up call for private equity, with writedowns and stalled fundraisings to prove it. Here’s a rundown of the ten largest deals of all time--which all occurred in this decade--and how they’ve fared in the interim.

While news reports are calling the “00s” anything from a lost decade to one to skip, to one without authority to just plain sucky. For private equity, the aughts could not have been more exciting (that is, until around mid-2007). The industry ballooned in the face of low interest rates and lax lending, leading to […]

Last year, the largest LBO list looked like a tallest midget contest. This year, it looks like a frat party. Yes, the top deals of 2009 were largely alcohol-fueled. Beer giant AB Inbev spent the year scurrying to unload assets to meet a $7 billion payment on its debt this fall, a hangover from the $52 billion merger of Anheuser Busch and InBev in 2008. Buyout firms pounced at the opportunity, giving AB-Inbev divestitures three of the 10 spots. The year’s largest deals included both an infrastructure and a real estate play. The largest deal of the year was, appropriately, a creditor takeover of bankrupt auto parts company. But there was some encouraging action. TPG may even do what no one thought possible a year ago: a $5 billion LBO. A take-private, no less. That deal isn’t perfect and faces a few hurdles before closing (including its February shareholder vote), but the fact that the firm is going for it—financing in hand—is more than just a little encouraging. Get the full list after the jump...

Although big deals seem to be picking up, exits--you know, the part where you make money--have not. Aside from the IPO resurgence (and then questions over whether the window has closed already), exits have not been on the table. This slideshow depicts the ten largest PE exits, globally, by M&A this year. Get them after the jump.

I'm out till next Monday- Happy Holidays! Tepid I.P.O.'s Spell Trouble for Private Equity: Half of the 16 PE-backed IPOs this year have been priced below their expected offering range. (Breakingviews) Carl Icahn Drinks Trump's Milkshake: Carl and The Donald are verbally abusing one another over Trump's bankrupt casino assets in Atlantic City. (Reformed Broker) Zany Job Hunting Techniques: This guy shaved his head for a job and it worked. (CNBC) Financial Villian of the Decade: This is no surprise. How easily we forget Skilling and Lay, no? (SmartMoney)