Hi all, I'm currently a bit over a year into a role working at a small international boutique placement agent doing private client advisory (GP fundraising & secondary advisory). I'm looking into applying for some roles in the same area, leaning more towards secondary's, but still very open to more fundraising focused seats.
I'm trying to get as much info as possible on the different groups across the street. I know PJT Park Hill, Evercore, and Lazard are probably the best players in this space and I'd love to get some insight on hours & culture for those groups.
Outside of the EB's, I'm a bit more in the dark as to who the best players are. More focused on banks here rather than independent boutiques (I know who most of these firms are and I'm more interested in getting experience on a bigger platform).
Any input from the community around comp, culture, hours, and best shops in the space are greatly appreciated. WSO needs more info on this space as it's an awesome vertical to work in while having relatively little information & discussion on the market.
Below are my thoughts as a secondary market buyer (principal) in the space. I work with all of the groups and think of them as follows. If you want more details, please let me know:
Tier 1:
Evercore - Has become the highest volume group but quality is a bit behind Jefferies and Goldman
Goldman Sachs - New group that's ex-Lazard. Strongest sponsor coverage and execution capabilities
Jefferies - The 'brand name' in the business. Team is ex Greenhill (who were #1). Priority is GP stakes but they still do LP baskets
PJT Park Hill - highly regarded group. A bit behind jefferies and goldman in quality but still tier 1
Tier 2:
Campbell Lutyens - A bit behind Jefferies, Evercore, Lazard, but well respect and strong deal flow
Lazard - A step behind Jefferies, Goldman, Evercore. Have some staffing issues and going to focus more on GP-leds now.
Tier 3:
Afidity - Similiar to M20 but better quality.
Axon Partners - Similar to Cebile but slightly better quality. Low volume.
Citi - Pretty limited deal flow, not really a player
Credit Suisse - Pretty limited deal flow, not really a player
Duff & Phelps - Hairy/exotic transactions - more of a valuation advisory shop
Eaton Partners - Placement agent that sometimes does GP-leds. Good quality group.
Elm Capital - Similar to Cebile but slightly better quality
Fairview Capital Group - Placement agent that sometimes does GP-leds. Not as good quality as Eaton or Sixpoint.
Greenhill - Asia-Pac team is only group remaining. They're pretty much just doing LP-trades. Think they'll go under soon.
M20 - Just a hair above Cebile in quality. Still not great.
Melting Point Solutions - Similar to Cebile but slightly better quality
Rede Partners - Placement agent that sometimes does GP-leds. Dealflow isn't as strong as Sixpoint or Eaton. Good name for fundraising.
Sixpoint Partners - Placement agent that sometimes does GP-leds. Good quality group.
Triago - Similar to Cebile but slightly better quality
UBS Alternative Funds Advisory - Pretty limited deal flow, not really a player
Upwelling Capital Group - Similar to Cebile but slightly better quality, limited deal flow
Tier 4:
Brant Street Capital - Pretty much the same business as Setter Capital. High volume but low quality.
Cebile Capital - High volume business but pretty sloppy execution. More of a brokerage shop. Recently acquired by Raymond James - word is the acquisition isn't going well.
Mozaic Capital Advisors - Low volume. Not the best quality/name.
Setter Capital - Very high volume business but pretty sloppy execution. More of a brokerage shop. Poor reputation and generally disliked in the industry
Other:
Guggenheimn - Seems dead after the false start and exodus to Jefferies.
Rothschild - Not sure if going to get off the ground. GP led shop.
Houlihan - Not sure if going to get off the ground. GP led shop.
Tradition Private Markets - Not sure if going to get off the ground. GP led shop.
I appreciate you writing all of this out but your list is colored in some very particular ways that I would not at all say are reflective of industry sentiment. Goldman literally just entered this space and I have not heard of a single deal they have printed. To put them above places like EVR/PJT and even LAZ is pretty questionable as you’re essentially ascribing more value to hype than results.
Similar story with JEFF. They are currently essentially the former GHL LP team under the same roof as GP-focused leavers from other more established shops. I agree that the team is very strong in its constituent pieces, but as a combined unit they are very much still proving themselves. Pretty biased IMO to suggest that these guys and Goldman are the best in any way. It would be as if McKinsey opened a restructuring IB practice tomorrow and you put them above PJT on the rationale that McKinsey is really good at the other stuff they’ve been doing this whole time.
Ask anyone who is a practitioner right now and they likely respond that EVR is enjoying its moment in the spotlight, having successfully capitalized on the COVID dislocation to bring forth good single asset and multi asset FCV deals. This doesn’t make them the “best”, but it does reflect the current (transient) state of play.
Goldman and Jeff on the other hand are very much two of the umpteen new entrants to the field - all of them betting big on secondaries while aggressively poaching top talent from the EVR/PJT/GHL incumbents.
I'll bite; which auction did you get mad at?
I could argue that we got the best possible outcome for our client? I can't think of a GP-Led deal I worked on in the last year where a buyer circumvented the process with premium terms and ultimately took down the entire deal; we've always syndicated out / attempted to at the highest terms.
As to your comment about the quality of deals, I'm willing to venture a guess you're not talking about the quality of the GP or assets but whether or not the deal has good assets with quality terms? I haven't seen the deal flow from the other side, but I have a tough time believing that there is better quality on the GP-Led side at other intermediaries. I'll concede the LP argument, we suck there, and it isn't a focus for reasons you've described in the thread.
We are definitely busy, but I work less than my traditional IB counterparts, namely weekends. We get emails from all of the competitors you've mentioned, and no one has been able to match or beat my comp, so I think you might be underestimating the figures.
The Sameer we are referring to is the Head of Secondaries (MD) at HL. Same dude?