Latham & Watkins Publishes Latest Edition of Private Capital Insights
Latham & Watkins is pleased to announce the launch of the latest edition of Private Capital Insights, a comprehensive report examining key global trends and developments impacting private capital investors, lenders, sponsors and other market participants across a range of asset classes and private capital strategies.
With private capital assets under management (AUM) exceeding US$11.9trn in 2021* - an increase of 50% over the last two years - the latest edition of Private Capital Insights discusses the continued global growth and impact of private funds, and explores the drivers of future demand across direct lending, infrastructure, real estate, private equity, distressed debt, structured credit, and growth capital.
The market study examines credit funds’ appetite for increasingly significant unitranche deals, and how new entrants in the direct lending space are changing the market dynamics alongside bank lenders and the public markets. The report also looks at the convergence between the private equity and private credit markets to offer hybrid instruments across the capital structure, and discusses the importance of ESG to asset managers both in initial deal diligence and throughout the lifetime of investments.
The report covers a range of topics that will continue to shape the global market in 2022, including:
• Structured credit – Impact of record CLO issuance, continued embedding of ESG, and a benign regulatory environment for the growth of the sector
• Direct lending – Drivers behind the convergence of deal terms
• Infrastructure – The increasing convergence of renewables, digital infrastructure, and other asset classes
• Investment funds – SEC’s heightened focus on private funds
• Real estate – Emerging investment themes: from “sheds and beds” to premium office and secondaries
• Growth and structured capital – Increased structuring and expanding investor universe in the US and Europe
“The last year has seen explosive growth in the private capital sector, marked by ever-growing deal sizes, record assets under management, new market entrants, and greater competition,” said Yen Sum, a partner in the London office of Latham & Watkins, who also serves as Global Co-Chair of Private Capital. “Our latest report examines a number of key drivers that will continue to shape this rapidly evolving market and we see significant opportunities for nimble investors across a range of asset classes.”
“The strong growth and influence of private funds has continued apace,” said Paul Sheridan, Global Co-Chair of Private Capital at Latham & Watkins and partner in the Washington, D.C. office. “Despite market disruption, fund managers successfully navigated and rose to the many challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, and in doing so demonstrated a resilience that we anticipate will fuel further appetite for creative and flexible capital solutions in the year ahead.”
Latham's market-leading team advises investors, lenders, sponsors in structuring, evaluating, committing capital to, managing, and realizing the myriad of investment opportunities across global markets and industries. The firm leverages the practice’s formidable depth of expertise in the US, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia to seamlessly advise market participants on all aspects of their business in deploying private capital, from fund formation, fundraising, and regulatory matters to analyzing, structuring, and executing transactions and portfolio management.
*Latham & Watkins Tactical Opportunities / Preqin