Jeffrey Stevenson’s vital contributions to private equity
Jeffrey Stevenson is in charge of a firm that manages mezzanine and equity funds in the information, media and communication sectors. He has been in charge of VSS fund since its inception in 1989 and maintains a $2.5 billion worth private equity fund today. Stevenson also holds the capacity of directors in Xtreme information, market strategies, access intelligence and InfoBase publishing. He is also a director at Southern theatres, medizine, ITN networks, user-friendly phonebooks, cambium learning and TMP worldwide.
The Growth of VSS Funds
After Jeffrey Stevenson pioneered the first fund private fund, the New York-based firm established its fourth fund by early 2000. This fund generated nearly a billion dollars. Initially, the firm majored in advisory work for media companies. However, that changed after the first fund was launched; the firm began dealing with private equity.
Up to date, the company has managed three structured capital funds and four equity funds. The funds give the firm flexibility and means of assisting growing companies. It helps businesses with capital to aid their acquisitions and growth.
Realising that there is a void for companies in the lower middle market, the firm chose to provide the much-needed capital. Traditional lenders do not easily finance companies in this bracket. Most of the firms that the company helps usually have an enterprise value of below $500 million.
The State of Investing After the 2008 Market Crash
Jeffrey Stevenson believes that after the 2008 market crash, the state of private equity is divided. Many investors are looking to cut down on their management while others want to leave the market entirely. On the other hand, some of the people who are new to private equity prefer this sector rather than the public market.
Today, investors have more knowledge of the risks present in the industry; therefore, they make in-depth enquiries about their investments. This new trend has not changed the way the New York Company operates. He mentioned that the firm has always offered detailed information on its operations through the quarterly operating reports.
Jeffrey Stevenson believes that for investors to increase their return in this decade, they have to be patient and take risks.