Dry Powder: The Private Equity Podcast

Nigel Dawn, senior managing director at Evercore, explains how GPs and LPs are discovering new tools and techniques to finance deals.

We asked two of Bain’s leading experts on commercial excellence to take us to the cutting edge of investor relations.

As inflation trends downward, should investors plan for a lower interest rate environment in 2024 — and even the possibility of deflation?

Today on the show, I have a lively conversation with Ashby Monk, the executive director of the Stanford Research Initiative on Long Term Investing. Ashby studies the inner workings of pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, endowments and foundations —  in short all of those LPs that sit somewhere in between the public and private sectors.

“That means that they are optimizing for things that are not entirely evident to just the casual observer,” Ashby says.

In this episode of Dry Powder, I ask Ashby to take us inside the $140 trillion universe of long-term investing and help us understand what exactly these organizations are optimizing for.

If you'd like to stay up to date with my weekly series on LinkedIn, follow me here.

In part two of our interview series, we explore Vista’s approach to AI and how it connects to the company’s founding story.

We ask Vista’s CEO how he continues to do deals at an astonishing clip, despite the challenging conditions of today’s market.

If you'd like to stay up to date with my weekly series on LinkedIn, follow me here.

We ask the founding team at Greater Share about their intriguing new approach to philanthropic funding and how they’ve already garnered support from some of the world’s leading GPs.

In part two of our macro series, we explore the risks and rewards of public-private partnerships.

We ask Karen Harris, the managing director of Bain’s Macro Trends Group, whether the economy could emerge from this period of rate hikes unscathed.

If you'd like to stay up to date with my weekly series on LinkedIn, follow me here.

In part two of our interview series, we ask Steve how he recruits and retains a team of all-star players.

If you'd like to stay up to date with my weekly series of posts on LinkedIn, you can follow me here.

The longtime chairman and now senior advisor at Bain capital explains why he is “as excited” to be involved in the private equity industry today as he was 30 years ago.

If you'd like to stay up to date with my weekly series of posts on LinkedIn, you can follow me here.

In the second part of our interview series with WCAS, we explore how they “co-cover” the healthcare and tech industries, together.

We ask Welsh Carson how they identify the next generation of leaders within the firm and how they extend those practices to their wider ecosystem of partners and advisors.

I've also launched a weekly series of posts on LinkedIn, which you can follow  here.

In such a severely capital-constrained environment, you need to give your LP’s  confidence that you’ll be able to deliver real results over the next five years. 

Read our latest research on the fundraising slowdown and how top private equity firms are learning to sell, here.

I've also started a weekly series of posts on LinkedIn, which you can follow here.

Deal activity, exits and fundraising are all sharply down, but the fear of a recession is also subsiding. So what’s holding investors back?

Read Bain's Private Equity Midyear Report 2023, here.

You can also find our latest research on the fundraising slowdown and how top private equity firms are learning to sell, here.

I've also started a weekly series of posts on LinkedIn, which you can follow here.

On the previous episode of Dry Powder, Ian Charles, managing partner at Arctos Sports Partners, took us inside his approach to sports investing. It was a master class in sector specialization and value creation that you don’t want to miss, but Ian has always tended to go after nonobvious opportunities.

“I grew up in a small town in Alaska,” he says. “One of the things that you always heard as a kid was if you go out on the frozen lake, make sure you’re not around too many of your friends. It’s actually safer to be all alone.”

Today on the show, I ask Ian how he helped bring about a series of innovations in the secondaries market at Arctos, which launched a new strategy this week expanding into broader private markets. We’ll reflect on the creative transaction structures that have made secondaries more accessible and efficient.

I've also started a series of weekly posts on LinkedIn, which you can follow here.

Ian Charles, the managing partner of Arctos’ Sports Partners, takes us inside the world of sports investing.

We asked Bain’s leading macro expert whether the dollar’s status as a global reserve currency is really under threat.

Karen Harris, the head of Bain’s Macro Trends Group, returns to the show for a conversation on interest rates, bank runs and an unusual mix of economic indicators.

We consider whether the launch of a few tokenized funds amounts to an interesting experiment on the blockchain or the beginning of a powerful secular trend.

If you'd like to learn more about the democratization of private equity, I recommend you listen to our interviews with the CEOs of Titanbay, Moonfare and Opto Investments.

I've also started a series of weekly posts on LinkedIn, which you can follow here.

We asked the CEO of Opto Investments to take us inside their eye-opening series A round and why they’re pursuing Registered Investment Advisors with a laser-like focus.

If you haven’t heard our interviews with the CEOs of Moonfare and Titanbay, I highly recommend you go back and listen to those episodes as well.

I've also started a series of weekly posts on LinkedIn. If you're interested in receiving those updates, follow my LinkedIn profile, here.

We asked the CEO of Moonfare what it takes to get ordinary investors up to speed and investing in private equity with confidence.

If you haven't heard my interview with another early mover in this space, the CEO of Titanbay, I highly recommend you go back and listen to those episodes as well. 

I've also started a series of weekly posts on LinkedIn. If you're interested in receiving those updates, follow my LinkedIn profile, here.

Deal activity was on track for another record-setting year, until the wheels came off.

Read the full 2023 Global Private Equity Report, below:

https://www.bain.com/insights/topics/global-private-equity-report/

Behind the scenes at Davos, attendees were coming to terms with a fracturing world, a cascade of risks and, despite it all, a silver lining.

Today on Dry Powder, Karen Harris, managing director of Bain's Macro Trends Group, shares her key insights from Davos and how private equity investors are dealing with the emergent risks and opportunities of a multipolar world.

Listen to her previous appearances on Dry Powder, below:

Macro Risks: Everything, Everywhere, All at Once 

Macro Risks: Keep It Simple

Private equity firms are racing to build out their Web3 capabilities, from deal sourcing to diligence to the bleeding edge of tokenization fund management.  

Further Reading: 

For Digital Assets, Private Markets Offer the Greatest Opportunities

Investors have been funding a massive build out of Web3 infrastructure, despite the turmoil over the past year.

Further Reading

Web3 Could Rewrite the Rules of User Identity

Snap Chart: How Much Is Web3 Disrupting Your Industry?

The debate around ESG is heating up, but it may shed light on the future of ESG investing.

Further Reading

Closing the ESG Measurement Gap in Private Equity

Decarbonization: How Private Equity Can Make It Work

Private Equity Investors Debate the Best Path Forward on ESG

Businesses Urge SEC to Consider Mergers in Climate-Disclosure Rule

In Bain’s 2022 Midyear Private Equity Report, we help you plan for scenarios, not certainty.

Read the full report here: https://www.bain.com/insights/shifting-gears-private-equity-report-midyear-2022/

Translate technical jargon into actionable recommendations.

Learn more about Bain's Tech Insights Group here: https://www.bain.com/industry-expertise/private-equity/tech-due-diligence/

You don't need the keys to the source code to learn an awful lot about a business from the outside, in.

Learn more about Bain's Tech Insights Group here: https://www.bain.com/industry-expertise/private-equity/tech-due-diligence/

We consider the intensifying competition for tech, the rise of growth equity investing and the critical importance of sector expertise.

Read the full report here: bain.com/privateequityreport

By just about any measure, private equity set a remarkable new standard during 2021.

Read the full report here: bain.com/privateequityreport

The industry has not only bounced back, it has tripled in size.

Read the full report here:  Private Equity’s Wild First-Half Ride

Your value creation plan is the key to building a strong team, setting clear goals and delivering results.

Read the full report here: https://www.bain.com/insights/talent-decisions-global-private-equity-report-2021/

We consider a conceptual shift that has enormous implications for how the public and private sectors work together.

We take stock of a remarkable year of changes to the healthcare sector, fueled by innumerable acts of “healthcare heroism.”

We consider a critical question from this year’s Global Private Equity Report. 

Read the full report here.

Bain’s inaugural report on the state of the industry examines how leading companies are investing in AI and automation, the hybrid cloud, the Internet of Things, flexible supply chains, virtual sales and other tools to increase resilience and accelerate growth.

Read the full 2020 tech report here: https://www.bain.com/insights/topics/technology-report/

Bain’s inaugural report on the state of the industry examines how leading companies are investing in AI and automation, the hybrid cloud, the Internet of Things, flexible supply chains, virtual sales and other tools to increase resilience and accelerate growth.

Read the full 2020 tech report here: https://www.bain.com/insights/topics/technology-report/