Sponsors & Partners

Reed Smith is a top-15 global law firm with nearly 1,600 lawyers in 22 offices throughout the United States, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Founded in 1877, we represent leading alternative investment managers and institutional investors around the globe, as well as other operating businesses and financial institutions, from Fortune 100 companies to mid-market and emerging enterprises.

We provide the full spectrum of legal representation to clients in the investment industries, including fund formation and structuring; regulatory and compliance counseling for advisers, investors and issuers; enforcement defense and litigation; mergers & acquisitions and other corporate and capital markets transactions; ISDA, prime broker and other counterparty and service contract negotiations; and bankruptcy and restructuring affecting US and offshore funds as well as operating companies. We are a leading law firm in particular industries requiring specialized expertise that are frequent investment targets for venture capital and private equity, including health and life sciences; film, media and publishing; technology and social media; energy, metals and farm commodities; alternative energy and carbon trading; infrastructure development; shipping; and luxury and consumer goods. We have substantial experience representing fund administrators and others in the asset servicing industries as well as REIT sponsors, counseling real estate finance and other transactions. In all of our representations we bring the firm's expertise in state, local and international tax, technology transfer and licensing, insurance origination and recovery, employment and executive compensation, and data privacy.

Reed Smith has risen to national and international stature in large part because of its commitment to personal, high-level service, a focus on value and quality, and the experience we have in building long-term and mutually beneficial relationships. For more than 130 years, we have honed our ability to evolve and adapt to the needs of our clients, and we are committed to providing the very best service. Please visit us at www.reedsmith.com.

The Carlyle Group is a global alternative asset manager with $90.5 billion of assets under management committed to 67 funds as of March 31, 2010. Carlyle invests across three asset classes - private equity, real estate and credit alternatives - in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America and South America focusing on aerospace & defense, automotive & transportation, consumer & retail, energy & power, financial services, healthcare, industrial, infrastructure, technology & business services and telecommunications & media. Since 1987, the firm has invested $60.6 billion of equity in 969 transactions. The Carlyle Group employs more than 880 people in 19 countries. In the aggregate, Carlyle portfolio companies have more than $84 billion in revenue and employ more than 398,000 people around the world.

Grant Thornton is universally accepted on Wall Street
As Congress considers strict new regulations for hedge funds, it is more critical than ever to demonstrate to both regulators and investors that your fund receives a high-quality audit conducted by a reputable global firm. Grant Thornton has conducted audits of nearly 500 SEC issuer clients and approximately 1,200 hedge funds. Backed by our financial services specialists, SEC experience and global reach, Grant Thornton complies with the existing regulations and contemplates the impact of new regulations on funds and their investors.

Grant Thornton understands the hedge fund industry
Our Financial Services practice serves investment vehicles exempt from registration under the Investment Company Act (hedge funds, fund of funds and other investment funds, both domestic and offshore) and a broad array of broker-dealers. Our investment clients engage in a wide range of trading strategies: general equity funds, arbitrage funds, market neutral, small cap, global investment and emerging market funds, multi-manager, distressed and asset-backed funds. Our hedge fund clients range from start-ups to multi-billion dollar groups. Grant Thornton has been with some of our hedge fund clients – now with more than $1 billion in assets under management – when they were much smaller in size.

Clients from a wide range of sectors also tap our industry and technical specialists for equity, debt, sale, merger and acquisition transactions. In fact, Grant Thornton LLP provides services to 24% of the companies in the Fortune 1000 and to 23% of the companies in the Russell 1000. We also perform tax and/or advisory work for 50% of the companies in the Dow Jones Industrial Average and for 25% of the companies in the S&P 500. For additional information on our firm visit us on the web at www.grantthornton.com

Landmark is a private equity and real estate investment company specializing in secondary funds. Formed in 1989, the firm has one of the longest track records in the industry and is a leading source of liquidity to owners of interests in venture, mezzanine, buyout, and real estate limited partnerships. Landmark is headquartered in Simsbury, Connecticut, and has offices in Boston, Massachusetts and London, England.

Landmark has formed 27 funds focused primarily on venture capital, buyout, mezzanine and real estate partnership investing over the last 21 years. These funds have been capitalized at $8.3 billion* of which $6.1 billion has been invested or committed through in excess of 350 transactions.

The Landmark team includes 52 professionals and support staff experienced in all phases of investment origination, analysis, portfolio management, accounting, and reporting. The firm's competitive advantage in deal origination, structuring, and negotiation comes from having acquired more than 1,100 partnership interests that comprise over 13,000 underlying company and property investments. Landmark's team brings the philosophy, the process, and the knowledge to successfully execute sophisticated investment strategies. Our name, 'Landmark,' signifies the many historical firsts our firm has achieved in the private equity and real estate investment arena.

The Kauffman Fellows Program identifies, develops, and networks the next generation of leaders in the venture capital industry globally.  While working full time at a venture capital firm, a Kauffman Fellow experiences a 2-year apprenticeship program that features a case-based, structured educational curriculum with an individual development plan, development coaching, facilitated mentoring by a senior partner, and peer learning and networking – all with a focus on achieving success in the industry, and eventually providing leadership within the firm, in the venture capital industry, and beyond.

• Access to a heavily screened, pre-qualified exceptional talent pool,
• Infrastructure necessary to accelerate the learning and development of new venture professionals,
• Access to an instant, incomparable global network that adds to, and therefore broadens and deepens, the firm's network and deal flow, and
• Learning and networking by Fellows that can be shared and leveraged across the entire firm.

Contact us at JoinTheNetwork@kfp.org to learn more.

Committed to changing the face of finance, the Robert Toigo Foundation inspires and supports minority MBAs as they earn their degrees and pursue careers in finance. Currently 800 strong, Toigo’s Alumni work in all sectors and at all levels of leadership, including a strong and growing presence within the alternative investment arena. The only non-profit initiative focused on leadership development of minority professionals within finance, Toigo combines delivery of focused programs with industry-wide thought leadership and advocacy efforts. The Foundation’s work is championed by global and emerging finance organizations, public institutions and Fortune 500 corporations. ToigoFoundation.org

Dow Jones Private Markets is part of Financial Information Services, a division of Dow Jones & Co., a News Corporation company. Dow Jones Private Markets offers integrated content solutions for the deal-sourcing, due diligence and compliance needs of today’s venture capital and private equity investors, fund managers, advisors, and portfolio companies. Core products include the industry-specific deal databases Private Equity Source, LP Source and VentureSource, as well as the highly-respected publications Private Equity Analyst, VentureWire, Daily Bankruptcy Review and LBO Wire.

mergermarket is an independent Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) intelligence service, with the largest network of dedicated M&A journalists on the ground in 62 locations across the Americas, Asia-Pacific, Europe, the Middle-East and Africa. This team focuses on gathering actionable proprietary intelligence, creating the only origination database of live targets and bidders. mergermarket is also an unrivalled source of deal history. Public and private deals across a range of sectors can be searched using an exhaustive database. This proprietary intelligence and historical deals database is available to over 100,000 individual subscribers from more than 1,500 of the world's principal advisory firms, investment banks, law firms, private equity firms and corporates. mergermarket is part of The Mergermarket Group, a division of the Financial Times Group, publisher of the Financial Times newspaper and FT.com. The FT Group is a division of Pearson plc, the international media group. Visit www.mergermarket.com

Private Equity News provides daily news, latest top stories, commentary and analysis for Europe’s private equity industry into one single tailored weekly publication.

Whether you’re focused on fundraising, deals, debt, advisory services or you’re an investor, Private Equity News will keep you abreast of the news and trends important to you.

Private Equity News Online: www.penews.com provides dedicated country focus section, case studies, news by deal size – large buyout, mid-market and venture.

To research the market, subscribers can also access a powerful searchable archive of private equity stories.

For a FREE TRIAL or more information, call Tommy Nguyen on +44 (0) 207 309 7707 or visit our website: www.penews.com.

Dow Jones Private Equity Analyst Conference 2010
September 28 - 29, 2010, Waldorf Astoria | New York City

Hosted by top editors from Dow Jones and The Wall Street Journal, the Private Equity Analyst Conference is unparalleled in the caliber of its speakers, attendees and program. Through dynamic interviews with private equity's most influential players, you'll gain new insights on the key issues affecting the industry and the actionable strategies and connections you need to excel in an environment that is more competitive and fast-changing than ever before.

Register online http://peaoutlook.dowjones.com/registeror call 1-866-291-1800.