1 / 19

PRIVATE PLACEMENTS: From Term Sheets to Offering Materials to Closing

PRIVATE PLACEMENTS: From Term Sheets to Offering Materials to Closing. Leslie A. Drockton, Partner Benesch, Friedlander, Coplan & Aronoff LLP. Overview.

lynley
Download Presentation

PRIVATE PLACEMENTS: From Term Sheets to Offering Materials to Closing

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript


  1. PRIVATE PLACEMENTS:From Term Sheets to Offering Materials to Closing Leslie A. Drockton, Partner Benesch, Friedlander, Coplan & Aronoff LLP

  2. Overview • Capital Commitments are on a pace to surpass $220 billion this year, approximately half of which are committed to mega-funds (more than $5 billion in commitments).Through the first half of the year investors committed $113.35 billion to 117 funds. • US EBITDA multiples have fallen from 10.7x in 2016 to 10.5x through the second quarter. • Deal flow in U.S. through the second quarter: 866 deals ($151.1 billion, estimated). Slightly below 2016 levels.

  3. Overview (cont.) • Exits decreased to 474 deals ($102.3 billion). • Firms are raising capital faster in 2017. Buy-out funds that closed in 2017 spent an average of 8 months between launch and first close (12 months in 2016 and 13 months in 2015). Time between launch and initial close is down to 6 months (7 months in 2015).

  4. Overview (cont.) • Average buy-out fund closed with an average of 120% of its target commitments. • Buy-out funds currently have $540 billion to deploy, which will provide challenges for the industry. • Both family offices and institutional investors are allocating more resources to private equity.

  5. Planning • Assemble the Team • Accountants • Lawyers • Financial Intermediaries • Bankers/Lenders • Consultants • Know your limitations • Existing agreements • Non-Disclosure agreements • Regulatory restrictions

  6. Planning (cont.) • Self-Evaluation • Understand the market and terms • Develop your business plan or investment thesis • Develop an investor profile and target list • Research your potential investors • Set up an electronic data room • Develop your time-line and process • Consider warehousing of deals • Check references on advisors

  7. Structure • Entity Structure • Limited Partnership (traditional PE fund structure) • Limited Liability Company • C-Corporation • Tax Considerations • Limited Offering Exemption • General Solicitation (Jobs Act) • Pre-existing Relationships • Use of intermediaries to establish pre-existing relationship

  8. Structure (cont.) • Terms • Understand what is market • Consideration of regulatory pressures on your terms and documents • Vet the key terms with advisors • Co-investments • Revisit your prior agreements • ILPA (Institutional Limited Partners Association) Standards • Guiding principles alignment of interest, governance and transparency • Announced at the beginning of the year Phase II of its Private Equity Transparency initiative which is focused on increasing global adoption of its reporting templates

  9. Regulatory Considerations • Securities Laws • the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (Section 3(b) or 4(2)) • Regulation D Safe Harbor/State Law Preemption • State Securities Laws (Blue Sky Laws) • Accredited Investor • Bad Actors • 10b-5 • Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended • Investment Advisers have a fiduciary duty to act in the best interests of their clients • Qualified Client • Attribution Rules • Family Office Exemption • Venture Capital Exemption • Private Fund Exemption

  10. Regulatory Considerations (cont.) • Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended • Qualified Purchasers • 100 Beneficial Owners (3(C)(1)) • Attribution Rules (formed for the purpose of investing in the fund, 10% holder and vehicles where the holders can self direct)

  11. Regulatory Considerations (cont.) • SEC Enforcement and Exam Trends • Valuations • Undisclosed fees • Trade allocations • Insider trading • Conflicts • Securities Act of 1934, as amended • Compensating fund employees for fund raising and M & A activity • Use of Placement Agents

  12. Regulatory Considerations (cont.) • Commodity Exchange Act • Rescission of a central regulatory exemption for private fund advisers. If you engage in interest hedging activities registration as a commodity pool operator may be required. • ERISA • Heightened fiduciary obligations for funds who are considered to hold plan assets. • Significant participation test (25%). • VCOC and REOC exemption

  13. Regulatory Considerations (cont.) • Other • AML Policies • OFAC

  14. Documentation • Term Sheet/Executive Summary • Opportunity • Principals • Performance • Economics • Disclaimers • Use it as an opportunity to test the waters • Use charts and graphs • Be strategic with disclosure; keep it brief

  15. Documentation (cont.) • Confidential Offering Memorandum • Dual Purpose: Compliance and Marketing • Style and substance varies depending on the target audience, deal structure, distribution channels and securities law exemption • Primary goal is to satisfy disclosure obligations • Disclosure regarding the nature, character and risk factors relating to your offering

  16. Documentation (cont.) • Governing Documents • Limited Partnership Agreement • General Partner organization documents • Other Materials • Side Letters • Subscription Documents/Questionnaires • If you are engaged in a general solicitation under the safe harbor you have heightened obligations with respect to verifying “accredited investor” stratus

  17. Documentation (cont.) • Non-Disclosure Agreements • Management Agreements • Custody Agreements • Privacy Policy • Co-Investment Policies • Allocation Policy • Compliance Program • Purchase Agreement • Direct Participation Programs

  18. 10351191v1 Closing • Finalize Negotiations • Multiple Closings • Manage Expectations/Communication with Investors is key • Confirm completion of subscription materials • Qualify investors • Escrow • Log/Document receipt of subscription materials and funds from investors • Preparation of securities filings

  19. Practical Advice • Be patient; spend the time in the planning stage • Understand the market • Know your investors • You have to build relationships before you need them • Communicate • Focus on the opportunity • Don’t ever fake an answer • Don’t overpromise on delivery of materials • Be consistent with your message • Avoid blind solicitations

More Related