Kevin Ley

The SEC is proposing to create a new asset management enforcement unit, which could be good news for firms that have complained in the past about a lack of private equity expertise among auditors and investigators.

Proposed regulations could force many 'foreign advisors' to register with the SEC, potentially causing them to limit their number of US LPs.

Investment firms with assets over a ‘modest threshold’ will need to register with the SEC, according to a proposal released last night by the White House. The plan comes a day after a Senate bill set $30m as the line above which all firms would need to register.

The US firm has been deploying cash consistently throughout the past month, most recently having invested $160m to acquire the ice-making business of Manitowoc. It is also set to exit electronic payment firm Metavante, which will be merged with Fidelity National Information Services to create a $10bn enterprise.

New guidelines announced by the Financial Accounting Standards Board, in response to recent pressure amid increasing write-downs and stock drops, will give GPs more room to manoeuvre in pricing investments.

The US government's moves to gain greater regulatory control over large financial instutions would obligate some private equity firms to register with the SEC and supply data including the names of LPs and leverage levels on deals.

The California-based firm is buying the newspaper, which has a weekday circulation of 270,000, as the newspaper industry continues to contract amid plummeting sales.

A recent poll of institutional and private investors has revealed that a number of participants are scaling back their private equity commitments and planning to stay out of the market for the near term.

A recent poll of institutional and private investors has revealed that a number of participants are scaling back their commitments to alternatives and planning to stay out of the market for the near term.