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In this response, Invest Europe has confirmed its support for the European Commission’s work in this field, recognising the fiduciary duty of institutional investors and asset managers to incorporate sustainability factors in their investment decisions and monitoring. However, we feel it is important to maintain a certain level of discretion and flexibility, as it will be up to asset managers and investors themselves to decide and agree on how they do this given they might have different (responsible) investment approaches, clients and beneficiaries, and operate under different (national) legislation.

In this response, the private equity industry supports the European Commission’s initiative to reduce the burden of public offering for smaller firms, noting that these firms are often discouraged from seeking to launch an Initial Public Offering (IPO) on public markets given the amount of requirements they are subject to.

The consultation launched in November 2017 is EIOPA’s final step to reassess the treatment of unlisted equity in the context of Solvency II review. This response reiterates our concern that the current 39% risk charge for private equity does not reflect the actual risk insurers face when investing in the asset class. It suggests therefore that a sub-category of asset should be created to allow for a more appropriate risk calibration. It also underlines that in setting a sound regulatory framework for risk calibration, it is critical that the approach taken reflects the way in which exposure to private equity is achieved by insurers.

Since 2007, the “fair value” (also referred to as the “fair market value”) rule applies to the valuation of assets held by institutional investors. This is the direct result of the application of the US GAAP FAS 157 (now ASC 820) and the IFRS 13, which converged in 2011 with the definition of fair value as the price that would be received by a seller for an asset in an orderly transaction between willing market participants at the measurement date. These accounting rules explicitly required institutional investors to take market prices and conditions into account when valuing all their assets. Private equity fund managers themselves had, therefore, to implement these rules to report to their investors accordingly.

Digital Food Lab: The European FoodTech ecosystem has been growing fast since 2014. Three delivery unicorns (Deliveroo, Delivery Hero and Hellofresh) weight for more than 60% of the total amount of money invested during the period. However, behind them, a vibrant ecosystem of entrepreneurs and investors is emerging. That’s not yet a European ecosystem per se but rather a collection of national centred ecosystems. Indeed, a few countries and cities are driving FoodTech in Europe (without many connections between them): Berlin with a small number of very well funded startups, Paris with many startups but without a leader and London with a dynamic and balanced ecosystem.

This booklet presents a compilation of frequently used graphs on entrepreneurship trends and SME performance drawn from the OECD Statistics and Data Directorate’s databases of Structural and Demographic Business Statistics (SDBS), Timely Indicators of Entrepreneurship (TIE), Trade by Enterprise Characteristics (TEC), Entrepreneurship Finance Database (EFD), and the Future of Business Survey (FOBS).

Coller Capital’s Global Private Equity Barometer is a unique snapshot of worldwide trends in private equity – a twice-yearly overview of the plans and opinions of institutional investors in private equity (Limited Partners, or LPs, as they are known) based in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific (including the Middle East). This 29th edition of the Global Private Equity Barometer captured the views of 110 private equity investors from around the world.

The Barometer’s findings are globally representative of the LP population by: Investor location / Type of investing organisation / Total assets under management and Length of experience of private equity investing

This is the fourth edition of the State of European Tech report, the single, most comprehensive data-driven story of European technology today. We’ve gathered data from world-class data partners and a survey of 5,000 members of the tech ecosystem, from founders to students, investors to researchers. We’ve tried to tell the most important stories. We cover diversity and inclusion, talent, regulation, investment, research and development, and the great, global disrupters out of Europe.

Probitas Partners’ annual online survey was conducted in late September/early October 2017 to gauge investor perspective and opinions on the private equity market going into 2018. These surveys are meant to both analyze emerging trends and to compare investors’ views as they change over time. Ninety-eight responses were received from investment professionals globally, representing such institutions as public and corporate pension plans, funds-offunds, insurance companies, family offices, endowments and foundations, and consultants and advisors.

About this report - This report analyses all announced equity investment in non-listed UK companies between 1 January 2011 – 31 March 2018.

Most distressed debt investments take place in developed markets with a common law background. Thanks to the high-quality data provided by eFront Insight, it is possible to take a deeper look at this market’s dynamics and so be better prepared to take advantage of any future upheaval.

Findings of the analysis of capital calls and distributions is that, in practice, portfolios are shrinking, beyond the optical illusion of fair market values. This has multiple practical consequences. First, a significant and durable correction will also deflate residual values significantly as the number of portfolio companies will have decreased. Second, fund managers continue to exercise a strong discipline in their investments. This would lead to stronger mid-term performance as they limit their exposure to high valuations. Finally, in case of significant market correction, distressed debt funds are expected to react fast and strongly, as was the case in 2002 and 2008.

Is PE more or less prepared for a public market collapse this time around? In the following pages, we outline the fundraising, investment and exit imperatives for PE. We also provide a comparison of the 2007 and 2017 data and an analysis of the trends that inform this guidance. While there are some similarities to 2007, PE as a sector has undergone a significant transformation. This evolutionary tale might not reveal when the peak of the present cycle will be reached, but it provides important perspectives about where it might be headed and how firms can remain relevant in an increasingly complex and competitive environment.

The purpose of this report is to provide analysis and recommendation to assist the Ministry of Finance in assessing whether the mandate to GPFG should be altered to allow for investments in unlisted equity, or Private Equity (PE) investments.

This position paper welcomes the publication of the Commission proposal reviewing the European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs). More specifically, it comments on the new ESMA direct supervisory powers over EuVECA and ELTIF funds, on the new funding and governance model and on the risks of making outsourcing and delegation arrangements more difficult.