Like Wall Street itself, the private equity sector is shifting its staffing focus toward emerging markets in Asia and eastern Europe. "Buyout firms such as Blackstone and CVC Capital Partners are moving key players from West to East and hiring locals in countries like Russia, China and India," Reuters reports.
Among examples cited:
- Permira is relocating its Asia Pacific regional head, Guido Paolo Gamucci, from Tokyo to set up a new Hong Kong office.
- Carlyle Group hired Anand Balasubrahmanyan last October to lead a new presence in Southeast Asia.
- In April, CVC hired Istvan Szoke from Advent International to build up its business in Central and Eastern Europe.
- Blackstone brought aboard Kemal Kaya as a senior advisor in Turkey, a new position.
Depressed deal activity in the major industrialized markets "is a trigger for private equity to redeploy people,'' a Jonathan Rowland, co-leader of Citigroup's banking unit for European PE clients, told the news service. Private equity-led M&A activity around the world totaled $63.1 billion last quarter, down 65 percent from the 2007 first quarter, according to Dealogic figures cited by Reuters. Asia ex-Japan bucked the trend, with PE-led deals gaining 15 percent to $5.8 billion.
