Allocate. Private Capital 2021

room The Grove Hertfordshire

  • Wednesday 01 September

  • Welcome BBQ

  • Thursday 02 September

  • 07:30

    Morning exercise

    Choice of run or yoga

  • 08:45

    Registration

  • 09:30

    Chair's opening remarks

  • 09:40

    Keynote: How technology, demographics and climate will define the road to 2030

    COVID has accelerated the drivers we’ve discussed at the past three Allocate events – technology, demographics & sustainability – which is causing investors to adapt to change faster than expected. This opening presenter shares their views on how society will look by 2030.

  • 10:10

    Panel: Investing in a post-COVID vintage

    A panel of GPs will state to what extent these drivers should be built into LP investment strategies, and how they will influence investment risks and opportunities in their own portfolios. 

    After 20 minutes of conversation, the audience will break into group roundtable discussions, before the feedback session offers some collective viewpoints.

  • 11:30

    Pause

  • 12:00

    Presentation: Subscribe now?

    The pandemic has encouraged the subscription lifestyle, providing access to goods and services when traditional channels were disrupted. Retailers and automotive manufacturers joined media organisations in exploring recurring revenue as a business model. We consider the extent to which the subscription economy alters the relationship between companies and consumers, the advantages and what it means for investors.

  • 12:20

    Panel: The convergence of growth equity and buyout investing

    The drive towards digitalisation apparent in many industries long before COVID-19 swept the globe, but the pandemic has led to a rapid acceleration in digital transformation as both businesses and consumers adapt to the new normal. Technology and tech-enabled businesses across all sectors are likely winners in the short and medium term especially in areas such as healthcare, payments and e-commerce that have met the needs of consumers whilst lockdown restrictions continue. 

    For many LPs, their allocation to both venture capital and growth equity has been modest but although the European buyout market has seen successful returns it is now seeing an over-supply of capital which alongside a high-leverage approach to maintain these returns may put off some investors. Early-stage venture capital is attracting greater interest, but it is also a more volatile market. Growth equity in comparison that focuses on companies at a more mature stage in their life cycle can provide great opportunities with significantly lower operational risk. 

    This panel will explore the opportunities for specialised growth investors as well as GPs looking to diversify their strategies as well as from LPs investing in the growth equity space.

  • 13:00

    Lunch

  • 14:00

    Keynote: The future of impact

  • 14:20

    Panel: Profit meets purpose - new opportunities in impact

    Growing pressuring from stakeholders including consumers, staff, and LPs as well as regulators means many firms are increasingly turning their focus to consider ESG factors across all aspects of their portfolios. Whilst some investors may have previously focused on the environmental factors given the potentially clearer risk mitigation benefits, there is growing pressure to acknowledge the interaction between the ESG topics. This has been driven by increasing societal pressure around both climate change and racial inequalities. 

    The COVID-19 pandemic further highlighted the challenges around supply-chain issues and emphasised the importance of robust risk-management plans in the face of future uncertainties including climate crises. However, the huge amounts of dry powder still waiting to be deployed and growing competition in a crowded market has also led to more GPs to look towards ESG and impact investing as a new source of value creation and differentiation. 

    This session will explore the latest emerging trends in impact investing including plant-based proteins, affordable housing, and plastics recycling and how managers can best understand these new and emerging themes. 

    After 20 minutes of conversation, the audience will break into group roundtable discussions, before the feedback session offers some collective viewpoints.

    Roundtables will focus on different questions including:

    • What are the best examples of D&I that the group has seen?
    • What are the most important supply chain risks to address?
    • What do consumers of today expect of the businesses they buy from?
  • 15:15

    Pause

  • 15:40

    Panel: Evolution of the secondaries market

    Despite the initial severe disruption to secondaries deal-making caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the private equity (PE) secondaries market saw a strong rebound in activity in late 2020, a trend expected to continue in 2021 due to the backlog in activity as well as the huge amounts of dry powder still waiting to be deployed. GP-led deals have been on the rise in recent years and proved particularly resilient over the last year, increasing their dominance in the market. A growing area within GP-led deals is the rise of single-asset transactions, which can be an attractive way for GPs to extend their hold on high quality assets to allow for value creation past the typical holding period. But will these trends continue long-term and what does this mean for co-investments and what is the outlook for LP deals? The maturation and growth of the secondaries market is likely to provide great investment opportunities but there is also growing competition and complexity.

  • 16:20

    Workshops

    Join a workshop of your choice to learn, discuss and network with LPs and GPs.

    • 16:20

      Workshop: Emerging Managers – raising profile and capital in a remote environment

      COVID-19 made it harder for many emerging managers and first-time funds looking to launch or fundraise as LPs focused on existing relationships during a period of uncertainty where usual due diligence was almost impossible with travel restrictions and lockdowns. But LPs may struggle to sustain a large-cap strategy just investing in well-established funds and seek to explore more specialised players in the lower-mid market.

      This session will explore:

      • How first-time funds and emerging managers can stand out in a crowded market? 
      • Does focused sector or strategy specialisation help to differentiate new players? 
      • The ongoing challenges of fundraising in a remote working environment and how to utilise digital tools for success
      • Can the European market learn from the more established ecosystem of emerging managers in North America?
    • 16:20

      Workshop: Spotlight on SPACs – exploring the risks and rewards

      The popularity of special-purpose acquisition companies, or SPACs, has been on the rise in the US in recent years, with the market turbulence and historically low interest rates as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic further fuelling activity. However, until recently the trend appeared to not have reached the European market in a significant way. But with many PE firms seeing them as an as a strong alternative to the traditional IPO route, there is a strong possibility that activity will continue to grow across European exchanges as demand outstrips supply in the US and regulators look at reforms to improve their openness to SPACs. 

      This session will explore:

      • Why SPACs have become so attractive
      • Key benefits and issues for sponsors to consider versus traditional PE and IPO exit strategies 
      • If this is a temporary response to a COVID-impacted market or a longer-term trend
  • 17:00

    Conference Close

  • 18:00

    Drinks Reception

    Sponsored by Travers Smith

  • 19:00

    Dinner

    Sponsored by Campbell Lutyens