Just wondering what their stature is most recently. Hear that MBA placement is great but I never really hear their name pop up during the discussion for firms/funds that perform really well. Would like an updated view on how they are, how well respected they are in PE, culture, comp, WLB, and their future prospects. Are they on an upward/downward trend?
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Very well-respected in PE. Known for having some of the smartest people in the industry - there are some absolute superstars.
Long ago Bain pioneered the operational value-add PE approach but since it's been copied by everyone probably not too differentiated anymore. These days the strategy remains buying high-quality assets and operating them well; see them on most major processes.
Performance has recovered since hiccupping in 2008 and been strong - on the mid/higher end of major MF peers that haven't ridden the tech wave (which is serving them well right now).
Culture is best in class, comp is market (not sure if this is updated).
Future prospects are strong, hard to say they're on an aggressive upward trend because they're already so large but in the end of the day this is one of the best and longest-standing brand names in the industry. Really successful buildout of adjacencies (credit, growth, VC, etc.) and geos (Japan especially) is worth highlighting.
TL;DR great place to learn as an associate and probably all things considered few better MFs to build a career at.
Super helpful, thanks
Any color on what the NAPE performance actually looked like last say 5 years, net of fees? What about BCC?
Can confirm they have some incredibly smart investors — really some of the most impressive people I’ve met in finance
Seems like everybody says their returns haven't been that great though. Obviously smarts isn't sufficient for great returns, but it would be great to hear more insight into how well Bain performs, especially recently compared to the peers.
Probably best for a bain employee to comment but have heard the 2013 fund that’s almost fully exited at this point with has some big winners & in really good shape
Dude that’s literally just interns on this forum repeating what they see other interns on this forum post. Recent returns for most of the funds are top quartile. Bain Cap NAPE had some low returns around the GFC, that’s definitely true. That group has since recovered very well, and other strategies (credit, special sits, etc.) have done very well. Go talk to someone who actually works there instead of 20 year olds on an anonymous online forum and you’ll get accurate information
Calm down. Actual latest reported numbers below. Don’t think this really qualifies as good returns. Last objectively great fund was 2008 Europe but that franchise seems very challenged now. 2013 fund is 3rd quartile only… although decent MOIC due to the long hold. There’s a reason a lot of the big LPs exited the fund over the last 5-10 years or so
Bain Cap Europe V (2018): 1x MOIC / 1.2% IRR / 4th quartile
Bain Cap 12 (2017): 1.4x MOIC / 4th quartile
Bain Cap Europe 4 (2014): 1.7x MOIC / 3rd quartile
Bain Cap 11 (2013): 1.9x MOIC / 3rd quartile
Bain Cap 10 (2008): 1.5x MOIC / 3rd quartile
Bain Cap Europe 3 (2008): 2x MOIC / 1st quartile
Bain Cap 9 (2006): 1.6x MOIC / 3rd quartile
Not sure what your quartile peer set is for North America but 1.9x MOIC on Bain Cap 2013 is higher than Advent 2012 (1.82x), Warburg 2012 (1.65x), KKR 2012, Apollo 2013 (1.73x), Blackstone 2015 (1.8x), Hellman & Friedman 2016 (1.72x), without meaningfully longer holds than any of those
Definitely not quite in the Thoma/Clearlake/TA tier for returns but very solid given little-to-no tech exposure
Bain Cap 2017 is only 30% returned so really too early to call on returns, 1.5x is standard on current funds from that vintage at that point on the j-curve (ie even tech-boosted Silver Lake 2018 is marked at 1.5x)
Less familiar with the European landscape but have heard those funds have struggled, lots of real economy businesses that felt COVID hard
who would you consider to be one or a few of the superstars at bain?
Could you clarify the whole "best in class" culture part? It's a sentiment floated around WSO often but it would be great to hear some specifics
If you say something enough, everyone thinks it’s true…
PM me for more info on their process.
What firms would you say are comparable to bain cap?
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Downward trend in my opinion but staying afloat due to rep and name alone. Performance below peers. Source: roommate worked there
Any opinion on the Tech Opps team at Bain?
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Bump, interest in outlook now, particularly for the new Special Sits fund
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