Firms and Funds

KarpReilly LLC, a newly formed mid-market buyout firm, has held a first close on its first fund, according to a source familiar with the situation. The firm, based in Greenwich, Conn., has received $200 million in commitments for KarpReilly Capital Partners LP, anchored by commitments from JPMorgan and Blackrock. In raising its debut fund, founders […]

Bloomberg is reporting that Bain Capital and Hellman & Friedman are working together on a deal for Lehman Brothers' investment management business, with an announcement to come as early as today. Each firm last week submitted separate bids of around $4 billion for the unit, which manages over $270 billion in assets. This includes Lehman's $35 billion private equity program, which includes buyout funds, venture capital funds, funds-of-funds and fund placement.

MILAN (Reuters) – Italy’s leading investment bank Mediobanca (MDBI.MI) could be interested in some private banking assets of U.S. insurer American International Group (AIG.N) (AIG) if they were for sale, Chief Executive Alberto Nagel said on Friday. “We … could look at private banking operations, particularly in certain countries,” Nagel said in answer to an […]

BEIJING (Reuters) – China Investment Corp on Friday dampened speculation that the sovereign wealth fund could be ready to increase its stake in U.S. investment bank Morgan Stanley (MS.N). CIC bought 9.9 percent of Morgan Stanley last December and is in talks to raise its holding to as high as 49 percent, according to sources […]

NEW YORK (Reuters) – American International Group Inc (AIG.N), which narrowly escaped financial collapse this week, on Thursday said it had named Edward Liddy as chairman and chief executive. Liddy succeeds Robert Willumstad, who is leaving after three months on the job, and in the wake of AIG — once the world’s largest insurer — […]

It's far too early to know how Jane Mendillo will fare as chief investment officer for the Harvard Management Co., but it is now clear that she gets to begin with a headstart over rival Yale. America's oldest university announced last week that its endowment stood at $36.9 billion for the fiscal year ending June 30, which represents an 8.6% increase over the prior year. Not too shabby, considering that the average university endowment actually lost value during that same period. Yale also posted a gain, but at a slower rate, according to a document obtained by the Yale Daily News. The Connecticut school's total endowment now stands at nearly $23 billion, which is second-best in the nation (and larger than the GDP of some actual nations). It would represent a 2.2% growth rate, were spending taken into account (Harvard's is 5.7%, including spending). The Yale paper says that both schools were able to buck the national trend by embracing alternative and real-asset investments, particularly since both schools saw drops in their doemstic and foreign equities portfolios. But, again, Harvard

San Francisco-based Vector Capital has transformed from a venture capital firm into a $2 billion buyout juggernaut over the past 10 years, and now it’s getting into the debt side of the business. Managing Partner Alex Slusky tells Buyouts that the tech-focused shop has raised $200 million from a single limited partner to lend to technology companies […]

There’s a new technology-focused PE firm in town. Sunnyvale, to be specific. 280 Capital Partners has launched and it’s looking to raise $250 million for its first fund, according to a source familiar with the situation. The firm is so new that its website is still under construction. Furthermore, it has no filings and no media […]

BEVERLY HILLS, California (Reuters) – The chairman of the No. 2 U.S. mortgage bank said on Wednesday that his company was “buying with both hands” and, given the distressed state of financial assets, he felt “like a kid in a candy store.” Wells Fargo (WFC.N) Chairman Richard Kovacevich declined to comment to Reuters at a […]

Jay Light, dean of Harvard Business School, has joined The Blackstone Group’s (NYSE: BX) board of directors.