Introduction to Private Equity: Venture, Growth, LBO and Turn-Around Capital, 2nd Edition

Introduction

Why another book about private equity, and especially an introductory one?

The answer lies in my experience of reading the available literature and my recurring lack of satisfaction regarding their ability to combine so as to formulate an articulate theory. Each piece of the private equity puzzle is interesting, but they somehow do not represent a harmonious and clear picture. I am obviously not the only one to be dissatisfied: the success of the abridged French version of this book (Demaria, 2006, 2008, 2010 and 2012), of which the first edition as well as the updated reprint were sold out each within less than a year, tends to confirm it.

There have been honourable attempts to paint a portrait of this emerging asset class, by famous and reputable institutions, such as The Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales (ICAEW). Many academics from different disciplines as well as finance practitioners have also tried to contribute to public enlightenment. One of the criticisms made of these written works is that they remain prisoners of ill-adapted theoretical frameworks. Designed as toolboxes for analysing quantitative data, these frameworks soon reveal their limitations as they were not designed specifically to analyse this asset class. Hence, private equity cannot be turned simply into equations as is done for hedge funds. Qualitative analysis is a determining factor at every level of the private equity pyramid of financing. For that reason, using mathematical ...