Christopher Witkowsky
New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has reached a resolution with The Carlyle Group under which the firm has pledged to avoid hiring placement agents to obtain investments from New York’s public pensions. Carlyle also agreed to pay $20m to ‘resolve its role’ in the pension pay-to-play investigation.
New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has reached a resolution with The Carlyle Group under which the firm has pledged to avoid hiring placement agents to obtain investments from New York’s public pensions. Carlyle also agreed to pay $20m to ‘resolve its role’ in the pension pay-to-play investigation.
New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has reached a resolution with The Carlyle Group under which the firm has pledged to avoid hiring placement agents to obtain investments from New York’s public pensions. Carlyle also agreed to pay $20m to ‘resolve its role’ in the pension pay-to-play investigation.
In an effort to encourage private equity and venture firms to establish funds based in RMB, the Chinese government is drafting rules and regulations that would allow various types of institutions in China to become investors in private equity funds.
The largest pension in the US has charged its staff with creating a disclosure policy for placement agents and their fees after it was revealed that CalPERS has ties to a kick-back scandal involving the New York State Common Retirement Fund.
The pension, with assets of $16bn as of 30 June 2008, made more than $300m of commitments in the past month, including to a debt fund from Mesa West Capital. The Mesa West fund, which is reportedly targeting up to $500m, is expected to close in the coming months, sources say.
The pension, with assets of $16bn as of 30 June, 2008, made commitments in the past month to firms including Germany-based Triton Advisors and mezzanine firm Falcon Investment Advisors.
The state’s comptroller, Thomas DiNapoli, has banned the use of placement agents in investments with the $122bn pension, and has launched a review of pension investments with firms involved in the New York Common kick-back scandal.
William Thompson, New York City’s comptroller who controls the city's five combined pensions, has called a meeting of trustees of the five pensions to consider the ban. Thompson has also asked New York’s attorney general to investigate Quadrangle, to which the city's pensions committed $125m in 2005 and 2006.
New Mexico State Investment Council may place on hold $60m in commitments to funds being raised by Landmark and New Stone Capital as it investigates finder’s fees paid by private equity advisor Aldus Equity, which the endowment suspended following the emergence of an alleged New York State Common Retirement Fund pay-to-play scheme.