Minneapolis Private Equity / Other Finance
Want to start by saying how great of a resource WSO has been over the past 10 years for myself personally and all others who I've seen benefit from all the positive feedback and collaboration on the site. What an awesome community.
I'm looking to make a transition to the Twin Cities (which is home for me) in the coming months. I currently work at a private equity fund (5 years of PE experience, ignore title above) along with a couple years of investment banking prior to my current role.
I'm aware that the finance world in Minneapolis is fairly small (but a good tight knit community) and I'm curious to know if anyone has any recommendations on firms to network with or that may be hiring in the near term.
My preference is a lateral move within PE, but given those firms/roles are few and far between (compared to other cities), I'm also open to other relevant roles at junior capital/mezz funds, HF, family offices, IB, institutional LPs (allocating to PE/HF), corporate development, etc.
Thanks in advance – I really appreciate any feedback/introductions (if you are at one of these types of firms it would be great to connect).
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Not sure who is hiring, but I know the area well. Here are some names that came to mind (with the assistance of a quick LinkedIn seach). YMMV on firm quality and trajectory. AUM might not be current.
The multibillion platforms (including non-PE):
- Varde ($13bn)
- Castlelake ($22bn)
- CarVal ($16bn)
- Norwest Equity + Mezz (unsure of AUM after combo)
- Pine River ($4bn)
- Walleye ($5bn)
- Garda ($10bn)
- Proterra ($4bn)
- Whitebox ($10bn)
- Yukon ($1-2 bn)
- Shoreview ($1-2 bn)
- Winslow ($17bn)
Other smaller or off the beaten path names (again, not just PE) include:
- McGinty
- GMB Mezz
- Arthur Ventures
- O'Brien-Staley
- Estuary Capital
- Northern Pacific Group
- Hunter Street
- Deepwater (fka Loup)
- Thrivent's PE group
- Vensana
- Newbound
- Carlson Private Capital
- Pohlad Companies
- Piper Merchant Banking Group
- Prudential Private Capital
- Tonka Bay
- TT Capital Partners
- Excelsior Energy Capital
- Matchstick
- Goldner Hawn
- Traction Capital
Thanks, this is super helpful (had not heard of some of these names).
Put some notes in the above names and below based on my experience. A few others that weren't on the list:
Northstar Capital - solid mezz fund, similar to GMB
Northcoast Mezz - new SBIC fund, came out of Spell Mezz (Spell isn't doing much these days)
Convergent Capital - smaller mezz fund
Brass Ring Capital - small SBIC buyout fund
Northern Lakes Capital - part of Stone Arch Capital spin out
Great River Company - other part of Stone Arch Capital spin out
Granite Equity - St. Cloud-based, not sure if they are still investing, did mostly regional LMM buyouts
Lake Country Capital - SBIC mezz fund, not sure of track record
Lightspring Capital - SBIC Mezz fund, ex-GMB
Great callouts. Between all of the strong credit shops, the PE scene, the former Cargill/Black River funds, interesting HF seats, VC opportunities, and plenty of RE firms one can build a great career in MN. Add in the IB (PSC, HL IB/RX, HW, etc.) and consulting (McKinsey, BCG) presence in addition to some very compelling corp dev teams (UHG, Cargill) and you have an awesome city for financial professionals. People from the coasts and other large cities have no clue how good the life can be in Minneapolis and the western suburbs, and I selfishly hope it stays that way.
This is really great commentary, thank you for sharing!
Really great list, I would add Waycrosse, Mercer Alternatives, BMO Family Office, and 3M Venture. I worked in HW's office there for about two years and got to know these and some of the groups you listed pretty well
Firms I know that are/were hiring recently: Norwest, Thrivent, Medallion, Carlson Private Capital. My recommendation to you is to join PEAM, they send out email blasts all the time for finance jobs located in MN
Thanks, I appreciate the guidance.
Castlelake is rumored to be for sale - just FYI that might impact/freeze hiring
That's interesting, I had heard there had been some change ups (senior level) going on there recently.
Saw a news article headline on it
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carlson is looking for a VP right now
Delete.
Where did you end up OP?
Still in process of looking - job market is a bit soft.
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