Private Equity, and leveraged buyouts in particular, has managed to stay quite decidedly under the radar for much of the credit crisis. This despite being, by definition, highly dependent on consistent, if not entirely favorable, interest rate environments, regarded as an easy scape-goat for the debt woes of many a struggling public firm, and populated with an uber-wealthy and less than discrete senior manager corps.
Despite the opaque nature of the panic, they are, however, not immune.
Debt funds managed by Apollo Management and Blackstone Group’s GSO Capital Partners recently fended off margin calls from banks as the prices of debt that they invested in were hammered, according to people familiar with the matter.
Apollo Credit Opportunities Fund LP received margin calls that were “modest” relative to the overall size of the fund, said a person with knowledge of the situation. In addition, the fund recently walked away from at least two agreed-to trades to purchase debt from Morgan Stanley and Royal Bank of Scotland because of the declining values of such securities, said three people familiar with the situation.
Apollo, GSO Debt Funds Have Faced Margin Call Issues [Deal Journal]
Just wait for “Operation: Take Back the Night ’09.” PE will more than likely be the overwhelming winner when all daggers have been sheathed.
Interviewed with GSO a little over a year ago pre-BX takeover. Their major investment at the time was sub debt in a company that owned O&G reserve fracture trucks. Ibid an ice machine company. Kinda all over the place, but nice guys.
2005 Fund Returns = Terrible
2006 Fund Returns = Worse
2007 Fund Returns = -100%
2008 Fund Returns = Better
2009 Fund Returns = Amazing
It is more about vintage than anything else.
article link does not work.
calling capital to post margin = priceless
Too discrete, need continuous.