Welcome to our February Broker-Dealer Newsletter !
Below, I would like to share some thoughts on the private capital markets and their role and impact on our banking practices.
To all of our success!
Private Capital Markets and the Independent Investment Banker
Almost all of the independent investment bankers on the GT Securities platform work either primarily or exclusively with privately held companies and funds.
They advise them on M&A options and alternatives on both the buy side and the sell side.
They raise equity and debt capital.
They offer valuation and growth strategy and guidance.
And when times get tough, they advise on restructuring, workouts and business rationalizations.
And of course bankers on the GTS platform have broad and deep relationships with private capital sources of all kinds – VC, PE, Family Office, Strategic, UHNW, and more.
Both in the fundamental context as counterparties (those that write the checks!), as buyside advisors, and as fund marketing agents and advisors.
In all of these roles, as bankers we are taking a stand.
Both as to the specific opportunities we represent and promote and…
…for the concept and class of private capital itself.
This of course starts with investment return expectation.
As I have previously mentioned, Steven McCourt, Managing Principal of Meketa Investment Group, among many others makes the compelling case that long term average PE returns – normally estimated at around 11% annually – because of fee burdens might be under-measured by as much as 7 percentage points.
This high return track record and expectation – combined with private capital’s ability to provide un-correlated returns / hedging potential – is what has driven 8X+ PE industry growth in the past 20 years.
Underlying it all is that most powerful and inspiring organizational form: entrepreneurial, innovation-rich organizations led primarily by owner / operator management.
I have been singing this tune for a very long time!
In 1999 I co-founded Growthink, Inc. – a strategic consultancy focused on assisting technology companies (aka dot coms) develop business plans to get started, to raise capital, and to exit.
And with my Growthink co-Founder Dave Lavinsky us two young, newly minted and idealistic MBAs wrote the following mission statement:
Our mission is to help executives and entrepreneurs grow their businesses so they can create jobs, offer customers better products and services, realize personal satisfaction and wealth, and fund programs that make the world a better place.
25 years later, this mission still informs and inspires my entire professional life.
At GT Securities, it drives “Kaizen” – that spirit of continuous improvement to make our platform the absolute best home for independent investment bankers on which to build their banking practices and earn great entrepreneurial livings.
And do so to a very large degree via helping all in our collective orbits to access and attain private capital opportunities and returns of all types and dimensions.
Yes, the world may too often paint investment banking as being just all about the money.
But we all know we are far more than that.
At its heart, we represent, enable, and empower a very, very good thing.
And let’s not let anyone ever question it!
Referrals. Do you know an investment banker looking for the benefits of independence and professionalism provided on the GT Securities platform? We are always interested in speaking to highly ethical and credentialed banking professionals to join our platform. Please reach out to me at [email protected]
Happy February to All!
