Prof Ulf Axelson

This course is compulsory on the MSc in Finance and Private Equity and MSc in Finance and Private Equity (Work Placement Pathway). This course is not available as an outside option.

• Evaluating and executing Private Equity Deals
• Business Plans, Venture Capital, and lEntrepreneurial Finance
• Private Equity as an asset class and the private equity landscape

This course provides a thorough grounding in the theory and recent developments in the field of private equity.

Starting by examining how private equity funds are raised and structured the course will examine how private equity can be used in start-ups, in scaling-up cash flow businesses, and in restructuring firms facing financial distress. The course explores the link between private and venture capital on the one hand and public securities markets on the other. The course will examine the process through which private equity investors exit their investments. The course will also give a detailed analysis of the types of finance used in private equity and an evaluation of the short and long-run performance of private equity investments. The course will include an evaluation of the performance of different types of private equity investment and a comparison with other forms of ownership will be undertaken.

This course takes a rigorous theoretical examination of private equity. It also employs some case study teaching and is taught in conjunction with a range of practitioners in the field.

30 hours of lectures and 30 hours of seminars in the LT.

This course is taught in the interactive lecturing format. There is no distinction between lectures and classes/seminars; there are “sessions” only, and the pedagogical approach in each session is interactive.

Each week there will typically be a formative case study assignments (similar to summative cases). Students will also be given formative feedback on their class participation.

Ulf Axelson, Tim Jenkinson, Per Strömberg, and Michael S. Weisbach. Leverage and Pricing in Buyouts: An Empirical Analysis. August 28, 2007; Steven N. Kaplan and Per Strömberg. Leveraged Buyouts and Private Equity, Social Science Research Network, June 2008; Cendrowski, Harry. Private Equity: Governance and Operations Assessment. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. 2008; Lerner, Joshua. Venture Capital and Private Equity: A Casebook. New York: John Wiley & Sons. 2000; Acharya V V; Franks J R & Servaes H (2007) "Private Equity: Boom and Bust?" Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, 19(4) , Fall 2007, 44-53.

Dissertation (60%, 6000 words) in the ST.
Coursework (20%) and class participation (20%) in the LT.