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KKR carves out former VMware from Broadcom; Orlando Bravo among speakers at NEXUS 2024

Good morning, Hubsters. MK Flynn with the Wire.

We’ve got a big deal to kick off the week, with KKR just announcing a tech carveout about an hour ago. Details below.

In private equity trends we’re following … Selling GP stakes is a major source of capital and growth for PE firms. Earlier in February, PE Hub reported that Blue Owl Capital and Lunate  formed a joint venture to acquire minority stakes in mid-sized GPs.

I was intrigued to see the news last week that Blackstone is moving GP stakes into its secondaries strategy under Verdun Perry. My colleagues at Private Equity International covered that, and I’ll share some of their story with PE Hub readers, below. Previously, PE Hub’s Rafael Canton spoke with Perry extensively, and I’ll resurface some of that story too.

And speaking of Blackstone, firm president Jonathan Gray is one of the headliners atPEI Group’s NEXUS 2024 summit in Orlando next week.Richard Melville, editorial director, US, of PEI, will conduct that Fireside Chat.

I’ve got some more highlights of next week’s summit, below.

But first….

Big deal of the day

KKR has agreed to acquire Broadcom’s end-user computing division for about $4 billion, as Iris Dorbian reports.

Premium subscribers to the Wire may read all about the deal.

GP stakes and secondaries far from strange bedfellows

There’s change afoot at the world’s largest private equity firm, writes Private Equity International’s Alex Lynn.

Premium subscribers may read an excerpt from his story.

PE Hub’s Rafael Canton recently spoke with Perry about the growing opportunities in the secondaries market. You can read that story here.

Meet you in Orlando

I’m busy prepping this week for PEI Group’s NEXUS 2024 summit in next week. The conference will take place In Orlando on March 6 – 8.

This afternoon, I’m talking to Thoma Bravo co-founder Orlando Bravo to plan our Fireside Chat at NEXUS on March 7.

The year is off to a solid start for Thoma Bravo. In February, the PE firm announced its first new deal of 2024 when it agreed to acquire Everbridge.

The firm has also been busy closing deals it announced last year, including EQS and BlueMatrix.

I’ll be asking Bravo about the current climate for tech deals. Will take-privates continue to thrive? Will the IPO market open back up? What’s the state of financing for tech deals today? We’ll also find out what he thinks of GenAI and other emerging technologies.

I’ll also be chairing the Dealmaking Track, including a panel on “The dealmaking sweet spot – Life in the lower middle market,” featuring Pam Hendrickson, vice chairman and COO of the Riverside Company and chairman of the board of the American Investment Council; Suzanne Yoon, founder and CEO of Kinzie Capital Partners; Andi Klein, managing partner, head of Triton Smaller Mid-Cap; and Kate Faust, partner, Rockwood Equity Partners.

Other PE thought leaders speaking at NEXUS include Carlyle’s David Rubenstein, KKR’s Scott Nuttall and Oaktree’s Howard Marks.

NEXUS also offers a rare opportunity to hear from influential LPs, including: Christopher Ailman, CIO, California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS); Lori Hall-Kimm, senior managing director and head of global private equity, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan (HOOPP); and Britt Harris, acting CEO and COO, Texas Permanent School Fund.

I can’t wait to see you there!

In the meantime, PE Hub Europe editor Craig McGlashan will be back with you tomorrow. 

Happy dealmaking,

MK

Read the full wire commentary on PE Hub ...

Also of note (may require subscriptions)

Vaalon Capital will look to the US for inspiration when the time comes to sell commercial trailer manufacturer Unitrailer, investment director Daniel Brol told PE Hub Europe.

Separate lawyers representing Trinitas Farming and its main creditor, Rabo Agrifinance, say the firm’s almond property portfolio is likely worth at least 65 percent of the $188 million debt held before its bankruptcy filing last week. (Agri Investor)

CM Venture Capital, a Chinese VC firm targeting international and domestic businesses promoting carbon mitigation, is planning to launch an evergreen private markets fund, Private Equity International understands.

The private real estate transaction market has yet to shake off the inertia of the past 12 months, with buyer and sellers’ price expectations still far apart in most sectors. Against this backdrop, playing for time is as much a consideration for prospective buyers as it is for asset owners avoiding an unnecessary sale. Some managers have therefore sought extensions to their funds’ investment periods. (Private Equity Real Estate)

CVC Capital Partners, which raised the private equity industry’s largest-ever fund last year, is seeking to tap the secondaries market to maintain its hold of a star-performing asset. (Secondaries Investor)

When you are short of your fundraising target, should you double down and extend your time frame, or should you just call it good and get on with the business of investing? For Liam Donohue, co-founder and managing partner of .406 Ventures, the answer was simple. “In this market there’s no rationality to go bang your head against a wall for another nine months,” he told told Venture Capital Journal.

They said it

“To use a baseball analogy, we’re still in the very early innings. I would argue we’re probably at the top of the second inning. And even if you’re not a baseball fan, you know that’s very early.”

— Blackstone’s Verdun Perry on the secondaries market