According to a report from the Wall Street Journal,"Spain and Italy, two countries the private-equity industry had forgotten, could soon become a deal playground for European and U.S. buyout firms''.
''At least 15 private-equity groups focused on the countries are looking to raise funds with a combined value of more than €4 billion ($5.4 billion), according to several people familiar with the matter and Preqin, a data provider. That is way more than the €1 billion raised since the start of 2010.
The Spanish and Italian markets enjoyed popularity with private-equity firms between 2005 and 2008 but activity died down during the financial crisis. It has been further hit by the euro zone's troubles.
There were 294 buyouts worth a total of $34.9 billion in Italy and Spain between January 2010 and Nov. 13 this year, a 45% drop in activity and a 46% drop in value compared with the boom-era period between January 2005 and December 2008, according to Dealogic, a data provider.
Milan's Clessidra SGR SpA, the largest buyout firm in southern Europe by funds raised in the past 10 years, plans to return to the market next year to raise as much as €1 billion for an Italy-focused fund, said two people familiar with the situation.
In February, Blackstone Group LP hired former Magnum Capital partner Inaki Echave to find deals in Spain and Portugal. In October 2012, Bain Capital LLC agreed to its first deal in Spain, buying the Atento call center division of Telefónica SA for €1.05 billion.
"We continue to look at opportunities in Italy and Spain because the fundamentals are improving, and many companies are refocusing their balance sheets by disposing of noncore assets that have good growth prospects in their own right, said Dwight Poler, a managing director at Bain Capital, citing Atento and Italian data company Cerved''.
