 TORONTO (May 10, 2007): Teachers’ Private Capital has opened a London office – its first outside of Canada – for enhanced access to European and international private equity opportunities.
Teachers’ Private Capital is the private investment arm of the CDN$106 billion (₤48 billion or €70 billion) Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan. It has more than CDN$4 billion (₤1.81 billion or €2.65 billion) invested in European private equity and infrastructure, and has been investing directly in companies and funds in Europe for more than 15 years.
“Our London office enables us to scout direct private equity investments as well as partnership commitment opportunities,” said Jim Leech, Senior Vice-President, Teachers' Private Capital. “The office will also give Teachers’ better access to our portfolio companies. Although we initially invested only as a minority shareholder with partners, as the fund has grown, we have moved to assume larger positions.”
Teachers’ works independently or with partners in direct private equity and mezzanine debt transactions. For the four years ended Dec. 31, 2006, Teachers’ private equity investments have achieved a rate of return of 33.3%, compared to 21.4% for its benchmark.
“We believe private capital will continue to generate considerable returns for our fund, and to optimize our efforts we need to be close to the market and the opportunities as they arise,” said Mr. Leech, adding that he expects the branch will grow with investment professionals from other asset classes, including infrastructure and real estate.
The new London branch is led by Director Andrew Claerhout, and is located at 4th Floor, Leconfield House, Curzon Street, Mayfair, London W1J 5JA. Telephone: +44 20 7659 4450.
Teachers’ Private Capital is ranked 20th in the world in total capital deployed over the past five years (February 2002 – April 2007) by Private Equity International in its PEI 50 ranking of the world’s largest private equity firms. It is the private investment arm of the CDN$106 billion (₤48 billion or €70 billion) Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, an independent corporation responsible for investing the fund and administering the pensions of Ontario’s 271,000 active and retired teachers. With more $16 billion (₤7.24 billion or €11 billion) in assets, Teachers’ Private Capital is one of North America’s largest private investors, providing equity and mezzanine debt capital for large and mid-sized companies, venture capital for developing industries, and financing for a growing portfolio of infrastructure and timberland assets worldwide.
Contact:
For U.K & European media inquiries:
Deborah Allan
Director, Communications and Media Relations
Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan
Mobile: 1 (416) 520-5022
deborah_allan@otpp.com
For Canadian media inquiries:
Debra Hanna
Manager, Pension Communications
Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan
416-730-5351
debra_hanna@otpp.com |
