Book Description

Private Equity Accounting, Investor Reporting and Beyond takes the discussion around private equity accounting to the next level beyond the basic private equity accounting principles identifying areas of importance where things can go wrong and delving into the intimate details of the different sub-asset classes such as real estate funds, infrastructure funds, debt funds, mezzanine funds, fund-of-funds (FoF) and other Limited Partners (large institutional investors, pension funds, university endowments, etc). The book also adds a new perspective - the perspective of the Limited Partners (LPs) investing in private equity allowing the LPs to have a peek at the private equity kitchen and its processes where all the General Partner (GP) accounts, investor reports and capital statements are forged and provides them with essential tips on what to check in GP reports and what the pitfalls of LP accounting for PE investments are. Starting with the main changes in the private equity landscape, the impact of private equity structures on the accounting and reporting, the importance of allocations and allocation rules, the reasons of their existence and the impact on investor reports of getting them wrong, highlighting some neglected processes (e.g. rebalancing, partner transfers) and common mistakes to some essential guidance and best practice of carried interest modelling, The Advanced Guide reveals intimate secrets of these processes previously available only by learning from peers. The Advanced Guide also elaborates on various reporting frameworks (ILPA Quarterly Reporting Best Practice, IPEV Investor Reporting Guidelines) and additional layers of reporting (ESG Reporting) and their specifics. The chapter on private equity valuations provides some invaluable guidance on valuations for different types of instruments such us non-controlling interest, fund interests (for LPs), private loans, not-traded debt and other debt instruments and provides an update on some current discussions such as the unit of account and the use of mathematical models (e.g. Option Pricing Models, Probability-expected Weighted Return Models) in private equity. Performance measurement is also taken to a whole new level discussing not only traditional performance metrics such as IRR and multiples and revealing some major flaws in the IRR as a traditional metric used by private equity, but also suggesting some new advanced performance metrics used by the most sophisticated GPs and LPs. Drawing on extensive experience as a practitioner and instructor, Mariya Stefanova reviews all the details and processes that private equity firms and fund accountants should follow, identifying both current best practices and costly pitfalls to avoid. Replete with up-to-date, user-friendly examples from all main jurisdictions, this guide explains the precise workings and lifecycles of private equity funds; reviews commercial terms; compares structures and their current tax treatments; shows how to read Limited Partnership Agreements; and much more.