Given the opportunity to park money with the world’s largest private equity firms, ordinary investors rushed in.
The private equity firms began to seek out smaller investors almost a decade ago.
It was a major shift for firms like Blackstone, Starwood Capital Group and KKR that had previously been funded by enormous pensions, endowments and sovereign wealth funds.
But it was also a way for the big fund managers to grow their assets and rake in ever larger fees.
The private equity firms had an allure, created by stellar track records, including during the 2008 financial crisis, and the fact that they had been off limits to ordinary (although wealthy) investors.
Persons:
Wall
Organizations:
Blackstone, Starwood Capital Group, KKR