Firms and Funds

KKR today announced that it saved $16.4 million in less than a year through its partnership with Environmental Defense Fund. The partnership reduced fuel and emission costs at U.S. Foodservice, Primedia and Sealy Corp. The firm plans to implement its plan at four more portfolio companies: Accellent, Biomet, Dollar General and HCA. I spoke with Ken Mehlman, KKR's head of global public affairs, about where the money will go, the program's total cost saving potential and KKR's interest in green investing. Our Q&A is after the jump...

Danske Private Equity has held a second close for its fourth fund-of-funds, already reaching the vehicle's €600m target. The fund expects to hold a final close by June 2009. Danske said the capital was raised from institutions in Nordic countries and that it would be deployed equally between investments in small and mid-market buyout funds in Western Europe and the US. Unlike previous funds, Danske Private Equity Partners IV will also look for opportunities in the secondary private equity market and will co-invest with its other funds.

peHUB has learned that Jeff Rich, former CEO of Affiliated Computer Services (NYSE: ACS), and Todd Furniss, former president of the Everest Group, have partnered to form a new private equity firm focused on the IT-enabled business services sector. The Dallas-based effort is named PlumTree Partners, and will formally announce itself next week. PlumTree has not yet decided on whether it will raise a formal fund, operate as a fundless sponsor backed by local family offices or become an investment holding company for a large corporation that has expressed interest. In general, however, is wants to invest between $25 million and $50 million of equity per year, in around four deals. If PlumTree were to pursue the formal fund structure, that would work out to around a $250 million target. I’m pretty skeptical of most new PE firms in today’s environment, but this one certainly has big-name experience on its side. Rich began his career as an LBO banker for Citi in the 1980s, before getting recruited by ACS to be its CFO.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. said on Wednesday that a partnership deal to make three of its portfolio companies more environmentally friendly had saved $16.4 million. The partnership, started in May with the nonprofit organization Environmental Defense Fund, reduced fuel and emission costs at food distributor U.S. Foodservice […]

Velocity Financial Group has opened an office in Santa Clara, Calif. It also hired Tony Huang as a vice president. Huang previously was a VP of tech banking at United Commercial Bank.

Mercer has agreed to merge its investment consulting business with Callan Associates. No financial terms were disclosed for the deal, which is expected to close later this quarter.

Candover, a London-headquartered private equity firm, has announced that it has entered into discussions with its fund investors regarding a restructuring of its Candover 2008 fund, which was understood to be targeting approximately €5 billion. A statement yesterday said that Candover had taken action due to the “current economic and market backdrop” and anticipates that […]

HOUSTON/ST JOHN’S, Antigua (Reuters) – Texas billionaire Allen Stanford and three of his companies were charged with “massive” fraud on Tuesday as federal agents swooped on his U.S. headquarters. In a civil complaint filed in federal court in Dallas, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission accused Stanford, a high-profile cricket promoter, and two executives of […]

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Lone Star Funds, the U.S. private equity manager that pushed deeper into distressed real estate as the credit crunch took hold in 2008, is raising another $20 billion for troubled assets, according to sources. Half of the new cash will be earmarked for commercial real estate, including commercial mortgage-backed securities, said […]

This space hasn’t always been too kind toward Bain Capital, in regards to the extraordinary fees it charges its (submissive) limited partners. Today, however, we need to give some credit where it’s due. The Boston-based buyout firm is proposing an amendment to all of its active private equity funds, which would temporarily waive all of its quarterly management fees. Those funds would instead be available for follow-on investment in existing portfolio companies, with the fees to ultimately be paid back out of the fund’s gross profits (assuming there are some). This strategy won’t matter much for relatively-uncalled Bain funds – like its tenth general PE fund or its third European fund – but is a big deal for a vehicle like Bain Capital IX, which is around 98% invested. Rather than using that final $160 million for fee payments, Bain would use it to inject additional equity into select existing investments.