EUROPE - EVCA defiant on difficult day for private equity

The mood at the EVCA Symposium held in Rome today was defiant. On the day that the BVCA CEO stepped down the voices on this side of the Channel were clear: "Politicians should be careful what they wish for," warned Philippe Costeletos from Texas Pacific Group. "We will deploy capital where we can get the best returns." The chorus of trade unions complaining about job cuts were also answered. Mercapital's Javier Loizaga, the EVCA chairman for 2006-7, urged critics to look at what he believes is the real issue. "There is too much talk about employment. The issue at stake is really competitiveness. In an environment where Europe appears to be losing the race for competitiveness, private equity saves companies by making them more competitive," he said. Guest speaker Douglas Lowenstein president of the US's new Private Equity Council urged the demystification of the industry, agreeing with Loizaga. "While we have to be more open, we must be careful not to oversell private equity and create expectations that don't fit with reality. Following an LBO there may be dislocation but the real argument is that we have added value and made the company more competitive."