Commentary

With only few active buyers, the secondary market for timberland fund stakes remains quite illiquid compared to other asset classes, creating inefficiencies and offering attractive discounts to net asset value, says Thomas Goodrich, a partner with Stafford Capital Partners.

The secondary market is now becoming well established. This represents a critical step in the evolution of the private equity market that will transform the way investors think about funds of funds, explains Benoit Verbrugghe, member of the executive committee and head of Ardian US.

Environmental, social and governance issues increasingly prevent LPs from committing to a specific fund, but might they also cause an uptick in secondaries deal flow?

Using leverage in private equity secondary transactions has its advantages but also raises issues around the form of security of such financings that both buyers and sellers should be aware of, explains Ted Craig, a partner with MJ Hudson in London.

Earlier this month an SEC official speaking at an industry conference signaled the US regulator’s interest in stapled secondary deals. Do they create situations where fiduciary duty may be skirted?

Navigating full pricing, the rise of restructurings and the use of seller financing in today’s booming secondaries market were among the topics debated recently in New York at a PEI roundtable.

Most of the secondaries opportunities in Israel are in venture funds that have invested in hard core technology assets, but evaluating the underlying portfolio companies is a challenge for most buyers, says Alan Feld, co-founder and managing partner of Vintage Investment Partners.

Historic infrastructure performance suggests now is the time for increased infrastructure secondaries opportunities in Canada, writes Nigel Brindley, co-founder of investment advisory firm Stratus Infrastructure.

CBRE is readying for an increase in one-off transactions that take advantage of immediate pricing opportunities, says senior managing director Philip Barker.