Fundraising

In Denmark, a law has been passed to remove the favourable tax status enjoyed by leveraged loans.

Separate reports from two leading authorities on the private equity market have thrown a positive light on the recent upheavals in the debt markets.

Los Angeles-based US Renewables Group has held a final close on its second fund, which will target renewable energy opportunities. It is nearly five times the size of its predecessor.

The alternative assets manager is capitalising on the booming wealth of the Gulf region with a spate of new buyout, mezzanine and growth capital funds and an almost 50 percent increase in client assets.

Ratings agency Moody’s is worried about the levels of debt being issued to private equity. It has highlighted refinancing as a concern claiming firms used this as a way to pass risk on to lenders, despite stated intentions to de-leverage.

The record debt package financing Kohlberg Kravis Roberts’s landmark £11 billion acquisition of Alliance Boots is proving attractive to debt investors. The buyout firm began its roadshow yesterday.

Kohlberg Kravis Roberts will become the latest alternative asset manager to raise funds on the public market, after revealing plans for a $1.25 billion initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange before the end of the year.

The central Europe mezzanine specialist has held a first close on its debut fund as it looks to capitalise on the favourable conditions for mezzanine investors. The fund has raised just under half of its €125 million target.

In a report likely to catch the attention of the UK Parliament’s Treasury Select Committee investigating private equity, the Bank of England has highlighted the increased risk of systemic failure if a large buyout defaults.

DIFC, the Dubai government-backed investment group which is a big investor in private equity, has launched a record-sized Islamic finance bond, with the majority of its investors coming from outside the MENA region.