Panels

Corporate Carve-Outs
Megafunds and Megadeals
VC Shift from Early to Growth Stage
Differentiation in the Middle Market
Limited Partner Perspectives
VC Investments in Digital Media
Making and Managing VC Investments Overseas
Partnering with Management
Private Equity in Infrastructure

Corporate Carve-outs

The Corporate Carve-Out Panel will discuss challenges, complexities, and rewards associated with carve-outs. Corporate carve-outs, which involve the acquisition of a business unit from a parent company, have become an increasing appealing type of private equity transaction. Panelists will share their unique perspectives and experiences gained from carve-out transactions. The panel discussion will encompass carve-out related topics such as transaction rationale, stand-alone costs, and transition issues.

Panelists include:
Ammar Al-Khudairy, CEO and Founding Shareholder, Amwal Al Khaleej
Philip M. Carpenter III, Managing Director and Partner, Bear Stearns Merchant Banking
Simon Davidson, Principal, Apax Partners
Reginald L. Jones, Founding and Managing Partner, Greenbriar Equity Group
Gregory S. Ledford, Managing Director, The Carlyle Group
Joseph R. Tomei, Co-founder and Managing Partner, Equifin Capital Partners

Moderator:
Tiberius Vadan, Director, Alvarez & Marsal

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Megafunds and Megadeals

Blackstone Group's decision to increase the size of the world's largest private equity fund to $20 billion has brought to question just how large funds can get, as well as the potential sizes of future deals. Multiple firms that already have $10+ billion in capital are expected to follow with increased fund sizes. The intent of this panel discussion is to delve into the qualities and dynamics of mega-funds, from raising capital, to sourcing large deals, managing risk and collaborating with other PE firms.

Panelists include:
Peter Clare, Managing Director, The Carlyle Group
Garrett Moran, Senior Managing Director, The Blackstone Group
Scott Nuttall, Partner, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts
Karl Peterson, Partner, Texas Pacific Group
Kent Weldon, Managing Director, Thomas H. Lee Partners

Moderator:
Alan Jones, Managing Director, Co-Head of Private Equity, Morgan Stanley

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VC Shift from Early to Growth Stage

The Early to Growth Stage Investments panel will be split into four groups of investors: early stage venture capital investors, growth stage investors, later stage and crossover funds, and multi-stage investors. Topics will include current market conditions with a focus on too much capital chasing too few deals, where returns will come from, the transition of typically early stage investors to growth and later stage investors, and the increasing size of venture funds and how these larger funds will find deals and define their edge to justify the amount of capital they have raised as the supply of money in the market continues to grow.

Panelists include:
Arun Gupta, Partner, Columbia Capital
Arthur Marks, General Partner, Valhalla Partners
Corey Mulloy, General Partner, Highland Capital Partners
Ajit Nazre, Partner, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers
Douglas Petillo, Partner, Edison Venture Fund
Ben Terk, Partner, Rho Ventures

Moderator:
Andrew Ross Sorkin, Chief Mergers and Acqusitions Reporter, New York Times

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Differentiation in the Middle Market

"Too many dollars chasing too few deals" has become a commonly referenced cliché amongst middle market private equity investors. The 'Differentiation in the Middle Market' panel will discuss current strategies private equity firms are employing to distinguish themselves in an increasingly competitive middle market. The discussion will broadly cover strategies such as: investment focus, investment process, and portfolio company management. In addition, the panel will address the responses these strategies are evoking from management teams and limited partners as well as the impact of the increasing size of middle market funds.

Panelists include:
John Cozzi, Managing Director, AEA Investors
Kim Davis, Managing Director and Founding Partner, Charlesbank Capital Partners
Walter C. Florence, Managing Director, Frontenac
Robert Juneja, Managing Director and Partner, Bear Stearns Merchant Banking
Douglas Karp, Managing Partner, Tailwind Capital
Mark Sullivan, Founding Partner of Lineage Capital

Moderator:
Peter McKelvey, Managing Director, Head of Private Equity, L.E.K. Consulting

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Limited Partner Perspectives

The panel will provide insights on the issues facing the private equity market today from a limited partner's perspective. Given the fast influx of capital into the alternative asset space, this panel will discuss and debate the variety of market forces at play which impact returns for private equity and shed light on strategies to identify and access tomorrow's Top-Tier funds. Panelists will cover expectations for returns over the next five years and how general partners can meet those expectations, both in conventional and innovative ways.

Panelists include:
Neil Banta, Managing Director, Battery Ventures, Private Equity Funds Group, Citigroup Global Markets
Andrew Kwee, Head of US Private Equity Office, LGT Capital Partners
Hartley R. Rogers, Chairman, Hamilton Lane
Brian W. Sullivan, Partner, Paul Capital Partners
Charles H. van Horne, Managing Director, Abbott Capital Management

Moderator:
Mark G. Heesen, President, National Venture Capital Association

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VC Investments in Digital Media

The reality of digital media has started a revolution in music, pictures, video and television, changing the way we consume them, store them and pay for them. Companies announce new products and services everyday. Which players have the best chance of shaping the industry to their advantage? Our panelists will address the opportunities, risks and challenges the industry faces and discuss topics such as the directions in which the industry is heading, successful business models, the Google factor, and "eyeballs based valuations" seen in different segments of the digital media space.

Panelists include:
Greg Blonder, General Partner, Morgenthaler Ventures
Ross Goldstein, Co-Founder and Managing Director, DFJ Gotham Ventures
Patrick Kerins, General Partner, New Enterprise Associates
Warren Lee, Principal, Canaan Partners
Howard Morgan, Partner, First Round Capital
Louis Toth, Managing Director, Comcast Interactive Capital

Moderator:
Dan Primack, Editor, Thomson Venture Economics

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Making and Managing VC Investments Overseas

Emerging markets (like China, India, Eastern Europe, Latin America and Middle East) offer both opportunities and challenges for the Venture Capital firms in the US. Most of the VC firms are rushing to these markets in pursuit of capitalizing on the opportunities. However it is critical to understand how to make and manage investments in these markets successfully. This panel will draw upon the experience of Venture Capitalists who are involved in managing investments in these markets and discuss the critical factors required to form a successful investment strategy. The key issues that will be discussed include type of investment, need for local presence, type of fund, type of exits and risk involved.

Panelists include:
Ajit Deora, Partner, Lightspeed Venture Partners
Jeffrey Harris, Managing Director, Warburg Pincus
Amish Jani, Senior Vice President, Pequot Ventures
Ken Pelowski, Founder and Managing Partner, Pinnacle Ventures
Anupendra Sharma, Investment Partner, Siemens Venture Capital
Andy Tang, Managing Director, DFJ Dragon Fund

Moderator:
Henny Sender, Senior Special Writer, The Wall Street Journal

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Partnering with Management

This panel will discuss the increasing trend in large cap "public to private" transactions. It will discuss the benefits to management of operating under private equity ownership beyond just avoiding the burdens of Sarbanes-Oxley regulations. It will feature executives and private equity sponsors who have worked together on management led buyouts. The sponsored firms are at different stages in their relationships with the private equity investors and thus this panel will provide insights into how private equity firms add value throughout the investment hold period.

Panelists include:
Andrew Balson, Managing Director, Bain Capital
David Brandon, Chairman and CEO, Domino's Pizza
Cristobal Conde, President and CEO, SunGard Data Systems
Tom Kendall, Co-Founder, Five Mile Capital Partners
Brian J. Modesitt, Principal, Vestar Capital Partners

Moderator:
Rafi Musher, CEO, Stax Inc.

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Private Equity in Infrastructure

The purpose of this panel is to discuss private investment in infrastructure for transportation, utilities, energy, water and telecommunications. In the past decade, private investment in these areas has been increasing in the US, Europe and emerging markets, with private parties contributing capital and often operating expertise. This panel will focus on:

Current trends in private equity investment in infrastructure, including the increasing degree competition for projects
Key financing and structuring considerations and investor return expectations
The relationship between private investors, regulators and governments and how this will shape future private infrastructure investment

Panelists include:
Robert Dove, Managing Director and Co-Head of Infrastructure, The Carlyle Group
Simon Gray, European Infrastructure, Babcock & Brown
Mark Florian, Managing Director and COO of the Municipal Finance and Infrastructure Group, Goldman, Sachs & Co.
Robinson Kupchak, Senior Vice President, Infrastructure Advisory Practice, Macquarie
Mark Weisdorf, Managing Director and CIO of the Infrastructure Investments Group, JPMorgan Asset Management
Michael Walsh, Partner, AIG Highstar Capital

Moderator:
Greg Peterson, Americas Private Equity Practice Leader, PricewaterhouseCoopers

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