Investcorp, the leading global provider and manager of alternative investment products, yesterday (April 16) opened its Private Equity investor’s conference at The Ritz Carlton Hotel, Manama.

Investcorp speakers emphasised that they remained confident in the future for private equity, and this view was endorsed by a leading international economist who also addressed the event.

The conference, held exclusively for Investcorp's private and institutional clients, was attended by around 100 investors, including individuals and representatives of institutions, as well as by economists and senior executives from Investcorp portfolio companies.

At a pre-conference working dinner on Tuesday evening, investors heard a presentation from president and CEO of The Lindsey Group Larry Lindsey, a former economic advisor to president Bush and president Reagan and Governor of the Federal Reserve from 1991 to 1997.

Lindsey spoke about developments and trends in the global economy, in particular the effects and ramifications of the sub-prime crisis.

Investcorp’s head of direct investment for Private Equity and Real Estate Christopher O’Brien and Investcorp’s European head of Private Equity Steven Puccinelli opened the conference with a comprehensive review of the current private equity climate and their perspectives on future challenges for this asset class.

This was followed by sessions led by senior executives from two of Investcorp’s current portfolio companies. CEO of Moody, Brendan Connolly, and chairman and former owner of Berlin Packaging, Andrew Berlin, gave management and owner perspectives of an acquisition and discussed their experiences working with Investcorp, in particular with Investcorp’s value enhancement model.

Columbia University’s chief investment officer with responsibility for an investment portfolio of some $7.5 billion Narv Narvekar gave his perspective on asset allocation in the current market environment.

A closing panel session looked at risk analysis in private equity investing and was led by Hassan Chehime, an Investcorp partner and risk management specialist alongside Investcorp’s head of treasury Jonathan Minor. – TradeArabia News Service