Advisory

We've built a team of highly skilled practitioners passionate about Private Equity, with deep technical and market knowledge. Over 250 experienced multilingual professionals are dedicated to Private Equity within our different practice areas. They're ready to help you make the right choices.

We constantly enhance our expertise through both, our work for PE clients and an extensive research, keeping abreast with market trends, challenges and regulatory developments, which enables us to build solutions addressing current and anticipating future Private Equity industry needs. This is what makes us a market leader for Private Equity services in Luxembourg.

We'll assemble a team of experts  to make sure we come up with an optimal solution, fit to your unique circumstances.

 Based on our extensive experience working with GPs / fund managers we provide advice to:

  • LPs
  • Management of companies seeking financing by PE;
  • Management of companies acquired by PE exploring performance improvement strategies;
  • Service providers to PE industry.

 

Structuring & Setup

Are you planning to set up a new fund or optimise an existing structure? Do you need advice on vehicle types, regulatory environments and potential impact on your investors?
Our team of tax and regulatory experts will help you:

  • choose the most suitable fund platform to meet your objectives, considering tax and regulatory requirements applicable in your circumstances, i.e. taking into consideration:
    • fund strategy (primaries, secondaries, involving co-investments etc.)
    • fundraising strategy
    • LP base - tax position of your investors
    • target investment countries etc.
    • principles of Islamic finance
  • structure management fees and carried interest;
  • prepare a package of documents necessary to establish your chosen vehicles, and apply for necessary licenses or register with the Regulator on your behalf (e.g. operating memorandum, SLAs, AIFM license documents);
  • design your governance framework and decision making flows (e.g. Board composition, necessary committees, roles & responsibilities);
  • optimise operational setup.
Fundraising

Are you looking to raise a new fund? Do you need assistance in finding investors, deciding on your marketing strategy or setting up a bridge facility? We will assist you with:

  • investor sourcing;
  • formulating the fundraising strategy, including cost-benefit analysis of placement options under different regulatory regimes and selection of a placement agent;
  • planning and executing your fundraising process, including:
    • preparation of documentation, setup and maintenance of the data room according to market best practice and regulatory requirements
    • completing investor due diligence questionnaires and answering their queries
  • registering your AIFs in all countries of marketing;
  • complying with AIFM Directive and local regulations in each country of marketing.
Investing

Does your deals team need assistance with screening/sourcing investments, negotiations and /or documentation? With skilled advisers for every aspect of a deal, we make sure you benefit from our years of experience and extensive business network in a variety of sectors across the world, which means we factor in local specificities.

Our extensive client base makes us leaders in industry knowledge and technical expertise, enabling us to carry out robust and timely assessments, thus bringing a strong advantage in the negotiation process.

We help you with:

  • deal sourcing:
    • within our large client base we can identify suitable candidates for PE investors, thus creating proprietary opportunities
    • screening according to defined criteria, such as ESG, Shariah compliance, etc.
  • investment thesis assessment, incl. consideration for tax and operational implications of options;
  • financial analysis and modelling:
    • our valuation experts offer an unrivalled breadth and depth of valuation experience in a wide variety of industries. We have teams of financial engineers and mathematicians ensuring that we address your unique circumstances in an appropriate manner.
    • strategic, commercial, operational, financial and tax due diligence
  • the negotiations of Sale and Purchase Agreements;
  • deal structuring from the tax and financial point of view.
Managing & Improving

For the Management of a PE backed business

We help you deal with a variety of challenges:

  • development of the business strategy to support decisions such as expansion into a new market or product range, reconsidering your marketing and distribution strategy, digitisation of your business, etc.;
  • help you optimise your capital structure;
  • assess your operating model and implement operational improvements, such as cost reduction, supply chain optimisation;
  • implementation of new systems and tools.

For the Fund Manager

We help you create value in your portfolio companies through:

  • strategic assessment and development & implementation of a new strategy for your portfolio company;
  • turnaround and restructuring;
  • provision of highly experienced interim management team;
  • portfolio monitoring ensuring adherence to investment strategy, risk levels and continuous compliance with any specific criteria, e.g. ESG, Islamic finance restrictions etc.
Realising

For fund investments

It takes time and careful planning to prepare for a smooth exit. You have to make sure your objectives are aligned with those of the portfolio company’s management, while aiming at achieving your target return.

We’ll strengthen your efforts by providing an independent strategic assessment and advice in the following areas:

  • exit strategy;
  • exit tactical planning, incorporating local requirements and tax nuances for aspects such as cash repatriation;
  • management incentives strategy;
  • introduction to suitable buyers, whether strategic or financial;
  • deal documentation, data room maintenance and management;
  • exit valuation and SPA negotiation;
  • IPO preparation.

For the fund

  • We help you deal with all formalities to wind down a structure at the end of the fund's life cycle;
  • We support you in case of unsuccessful investments;
  • We liaise with creditors and assist with the debt recovery process;
  • We act as a third party liquidator or support the liquidator during the liquidation process.

Sellers

We help you decide if PE backing is a suitable approach for you.

We also advise you on the most favourable time to start the sales process, how to emphasize value, minimise risks, and identify buyers right for you.

Whether you’re considering buying a stake in/taking control of the business you’re running or are wondering how to finance the growth plans you have, we assist you in considering your options.

We have a strong track record in guiding management teams through the complexities of a transaction, from raising equity and debt finance, achieving the right price and suitable incentives, to coordinating input from other advisers and assisting in negotiations through to completion. Where appropriate, we also identify and introduce suitable candidates for a management buy-in.

LPs

  • We help you with GP/fund due diligence;
  • We design reports, tailored to your regulatory and tax reporting obligations, and in line with market best practice and GP reporting capabilities.

Service Providers and external AIFMs

  • Based on our extensive experience working with PE firms we analyse your service offering, pricing strategy and assist with decisions such as market entry, product mix and pricing.

Having a well-designed operational setup and documented procedures will help you be more agile when it comes to regulatory compliance. In addition, this will give an incremental edge for smooth further expansion.

Are you a business leader looking to improve efficiency of operational aspects of your PE firm?

We help you:

  • assess efficiency and compliance of your Risk Management and Finance Functions via our health-check toolkit and prepare you for CSSF visits;
  • design and implement an AIFMD and/or SIF law compliant Risk Management framework using our proprietary tools developed specifically for PE;
  • foresee and mitigate regulatory changes that can reduce the effectiveness of your fund platform, e.g. with our Substance Assessment tool;
  • design or optimise your operating model and assist you in making important decisions, such as whether to outsource, what functions and to what extent;
  • automate processes and implement IT systems;
  • create a schedule of your global reporting obligations (statutory/ regulatory/ tax) showing what, when and to whom you need to report - our "CFO Companion" tool;
  • design and implement regulatory and investor reporting packages e.g. Solvency II, Liquidity or AIFM reporting;
  • assess your regulatory compliance (AIFMD, PRIIPS, FATCA, CRS);
  • draft your processes, policies and procedures in accordance with regulations and requirements applicable to you, based on our knowledge of best market practices and preferences of the Regulator;
  • manage your corporate documents and provide domiciliation services.

These are just a few examples of services we provide, to discuss your specific situation please feel free to reach out to us directly.

Contact us

Benjamin Gauthier
Partner
Tel: +352 49 48 48 4137
Email

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