Sovereign health

Not long ago, sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) achieved saviour status among an ailing private equity industry, with many commentators indicating that they would replace a large chunk of institutional money fleeing from the industry. Many GPs have indicated that future fundraisings will feature a relatively higher proportion of such investors, and sound grateful for the diversification into such "safe" backers. Such a reputation was illustrated earlier this year when Barclays secured an investment from the Persian Gulf, which was credited with staving off government ownership. The executive that orchestrated the deal, Roger Jenkins, has since left to set up a firm to advise SWFs