Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Carlyle Group Considers Geither's Public-Private Partnerships: Taxpayer Provides Leverage


Speaking from the sidelines of the SuperReturn Conference in Miami, Carlyle Group co-founder David Rubenstein laid down his expectations of Tim Geithner's public-private investment partnerships. Rules need to be clear, other than taxpayers will provide up to 93% of start up capital and profits will be split 50-50, even for firms only ponying up 7%. Reuters reported Rubenstein wants private equity underwriters (PEU's) to have:

1. Knowledge of the ground rules
2. The rules won't change (no additional regulations, disclosure or compensation limits)
3. There will be something to buy (cheaply, that can be resold later for big profits)
I'm sure Tim got the order. He already built in yacht loads of taxpayer funded capital, the leverage that David Rubenstein lamented is greatly reduced.