Amsterdam – Nov. 20, 2019 – Bain & Company, the leading advisor to private equity (PE) investors and, for the last decade, publishers of the industry-standard annual report on PE, today announced a partnership with CEPRES, the leading digital platform for investment analytics & data solutions for private capital markets, at SuperInvestor 2019. Bain and CEPRES have joined forces to give general partners (GPs) unrivaled access to a new set of products based on CEPRES technology. The Bain-CEPRES products will focus on deal-level returns and operating metrics that GPs can use to gain better insights into their strategy and investment decisions, delivering new levels of value. 

The last five years have been the best in the history of the private equity industry, but the same macroeconomic tailwinds that helped drive growth during this time also obscured the fact that many firms failed to achieve the margin goals they initially set out to achieve.  As the industry moves into a new economic cycle, firms cannot rely on multiple expansion to deliver the returns investors demand.  Those that have strong deal theses and plans for achieving value will emerge as the winners. 

The Bain-CEPRES product line partnership brings together two organizations that have the best and most trusted insights into the PE industry.  The data technology they will provide to the market will give GPs the tools they need to make investments that continue to outperform.

“We look forward to working with CEPRES, which has an outstanding reputation as the first organization to ‘look-through’ private market funds to underlying deal and asset performance, said Hugh MacArthur, leader of Bain & Company’s global private equity business.  “Their data-driven insights, coupled with our extensive experience with private equity and institutional investor clients across the investment life cycle – from deal generation and due diligence to portfolio value creation and exit planning – will better serve the industry and help it reach new levels of value for investors.”  

Recently, Bain and CEPRES conducted an in-depth look into how funds fared during the last downturn, including: how multiple expansion, revenue and earnings growth have contributed to deal outcomes; how timing before, during and after the crisis affected returns; and which sectors and sub-sectors—such as tech and healthcare—held up well, versus which fared poorly. Findings showed, for instance, that multiple expansion has driven half of the value creation in buyout deals invested in the wake of the global financial crisis. On the other hand, the contribution from margin expansion was much lower.  

Moving forward, CEPRES and Bain together will develop groundbreaking product lines for private equity investors available on the CEPRES platform and will work together on research projects that deliver powerful insights.

“It is a privilege to officially announce our partnership with Bain & Company. We are looking forward to creating even more value for the Private Equity industry by co-constructing new products based on their deep vertical expertise in combination with our solutions and market know-how,” said Dr. Daniel Schmidt, CEO and founder of CEPRES. “We share a deep appreciation for the quality of work and their invaluable reputation, and are very pleased to be recognized by them as the leading provider of private market investment analytics.”

CEPRES is part of the Bain Alliance Ecosystem  – a network of best-of-breed partnerships with complementary tool, technology, and service providers that accelerate delivery of breakthrough client results.  Through the Bain Alliance Ecosystem, Bain & Company clients have access to relevant new capabilities, enabling faster assimilation of new ideas, skills, and ways of working. 

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Editor's Note: To arrange an interview with Hugh MacArthur, contact Aliza Medina at aliza.medina@bain.com or +44 207 969 6480

To arrange an interview with Dr. Daniel Schmidt, contact Birgit Wiggert at birgit.wiggert@cepres.com or  +49 89 232 495 628