Stiff competition in the private equity world means deals are being done at incredible speed. In this context, managers need their advisers to work at pace; across jurisdictions, service lines and time zones, to ensure those deal timetables can be met.
“These goals can only be met by co-ordinated, technologically-savvy law firms that understand the PE industry as a whole. Our clients needs have continued to drive Ogier’s private equity offering forward, both in terms of expertise and depth, across all of our key PE jurisdictions,” declares Richard Daggett, partner in the private equity team at Ogier.
Approaching private equity holistically has been instrumental in the firm’s growth within the sector. There are more than 100 professionals in Ogier’s global private equity team and Daggett says, “understanding how the private equity life cycle operates as a whole, and where our service lines interact with that life cycle, has resulted in a stronger, co-ordinated offering.”
Outlining the potential challenges private equity managers may face, Daggett notes that the private equity sector has remained robust over the past 18 months. However, with such a huge amount of “dry powder” having been raised, just waiting to be spent, there is a concern about overpaying for assets just to deploy capital. “Higher buy-out multiples have put pressure on the industry to keep generating higher returns. As a result, many firms are shifting their focus to value creation and use of longer-term funds and fund extensions facilitated by the secondary market,” he comments.
Despite uncertainties in the geopolitical landscape, which could cause some short-term nervousness in fundraising, acquisitions, or divestments, Ogier’s view remains that we are likely to experience a further year of exceptionally strong numbers for the private equity industry.
“Our depth of expertise across each of our jurisdictions, combined with our multidisciplinary approach to cross-border transactions, provides a global perspective that is fully aligned with that of our international client base,” explains Daggett.
He confirms Ogier will continue to focus on what its private equity clients want most from the firm, that is, providing all aspects of the legal, regulatory and administrative services required by PE funds and investors throughout the PE life cycle from the five leading centres for PE – Jersey, Guernsey, Luxembourg, BVI and Cayman.
