European private equity dealflow summit visits Barcelona

01 August 2002

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In late September Barcelona played host to the European private equity dealflow summit, an event organised by IBC Global Conferences. The conference was chaired by Deloitte & Touche and included contributions from a wide variety of speakers from across Europe. The first day started with an overview of the European market, before looking at the fundraising environment and examining the views of several institutional investors. Current fundraising trends were discussed including the number of established buyout funds which have exceeded their target sizes, the difficulties of fundraising for groups wishing to invest in venture capital and the increasing scrutiny of fees on the part of limited partners. One delegate was of the opinion that, despite the current depressed nature of the market, the asset class will see an increase in institutional interest and a continued flight to safety, leading to additional demand for risk-minimising mechanisms such as funds-of-funds vehicles. The general consensus was that the current period could provide excellent opportunities for deal-doing and produce excellent returns in the long-term. Later sessions focused on deal sourcing, the state of the debt market and corporate restructuring. The second day examined the markets in specific countries including Italy, Spain, Germany, France and the Nordic region. The underlying potential of the Spanish buyout market and the disappointing impact of the capital gains tax laws in Germany were among some of the issues discussed by the panels. The examination of the Italian buyout market, meanwhile, focused on current trends in the market such as a modest correction in pricing levels and the increasing use of auctions.