CVC hires Pantheon's Huwendiek as head of comms

Harriet Bailey
20 March 2014

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CVC Capital Partners has named Carsten Huwendiek as its new head of communications in London, effective from 1 May.

Huwendiek is the current head of marketing and communications at Pantheon Ventures, having been there since 2008. In 2007, he was managing director at Cognito, an integrated communications consulting firm to the technology and financial sectors. Prior to that, Huwendiek held senior communications and marketing roles at ABN Amro and UBS Asset Management.

His global responsibilities at CVC will include investor communications and media relations, as well as branding and events.

In June last year, CVC closed its sixth European fund, CVC Capital Partners VI, on €10.5bn. The fund reached its target after six months of fundraising, with 90% of the funds raised coming from existing investors. The vehicle will target equity investments with a minimum value of $150m.

The new appointment follows CVC's struggle to raise a €2bn infrastructure fund, which it finally closed in July last year after having been on the road since 2008. The fund had received commitments from three investors but CVC is now said to be changing its approach to infrastructure investment. The private equity house is also embroiled in the bribery charges facing Bernie Ecclestone, who is due to go on trial in Germany next month for alleged bribery in connection with the sale of Formula 1 in 2006. Formula 1 is one of CVC's most profitable assets, and has already awarded the GP with more than 350% returns on its initial $2bn investment.

The appointment of Huwendiek signals a greater awareness of the company's wider image, amid the need for larger buyout houses to be conscious of their overall public perception in an era of increasing transparency in the industry.