LOS ANGELES, Nov. 9, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Aurora Capital Partners (“Aurora” or the “Firm”) is pleased to announce that Bianca Sganga has been promoted to Vice President. Prior to joining Aurora in 2019 as an Associate, Bianca worked in the Investment Banking Division at Goldman Sachs in both New York and Sydney.

At Aurora, Bianca has worked closely with Aurora portfolio companies Premier Roofing, where she is a member of the Board of Directors, and Randall Reilly. She has also played an active role in the Firm’s recruiting and training efforts for new Associates. Bianca earned her B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Columbia University.

“Bianca has been an outstanding contributor since joining Aurora, both internally as a key member of the investment team and externally to our portfolio companies,” said Matt Laycock, a Partner at Aurora. “Our team and culture are our most important assets at Aurora, and we look forward to Bianca’s continued growth in her new role.”

Aurora recently completed the sale of VLS Environmental Solutions to I Squared Capital in August as well as the sale of National Technical Systems to Element Materials Technology Group in September, the latter of which marked the final exit from Aurora’s Fund IV. The Firm also recently completed the take-private acquisition of Sharps Compliance in August and acquired Universal Pure in November.

About Aurora Capital Partners
Aurora Capital Partners is a leading Los Angeles-based private equity firm with over $4.5 billion in assets under management. Founded in 1991, the firm focuses principally on control investments in middle-market companies with leading market positions, stable industry dynamics, attractive business model characteristics and actionable opportunities for growth in partnership with management. Aurora provides unique resources to its portfolio companies through its Strategy & Operations Program and its team of experienced operating advisors. Aurora’s investors include leading public and corporate pension funds, endowments and foundations active in private equity investing. For more information about Aurora Capital Partners, visit: www.auroracap.com.

Media Contacts:
Aurora Capital Partners
ASC Advisors
Taylor Ingraham / Harriet Hartman
+1 (203) 992-1230
tingraham@ascadvisors.com / hhartman@ascadivsors.com

SOURCE Aurora Capital Partners

EQT AB (EQT) today announced three key additions to its Executive Committee (ExCom).

Suzanne Donohoe joins as Chief Commercial Officer (“CXO”) and will lead a newly-formed platform to drive EQT’s external commercial activities. She joins EQT most recently from KKR where she was a Partner & Global Head of Strategic Growth. Donohoe also built and led the Client & Partner Group for over a decade and served as Co-head of the Inclusion & Diversity Council. Her prior experience includes an extensive global career at Goldman Sachs. Altogether, Donohoe brings thirty years of experience to her new role, where she will be responsible for the firm’s external commercial activities (outside of its investment strategies). In addition to Capital Raising & Client Relations, the new Platform “EQT-Ext” includes the firm’s Sustainability, Business Development, and Communications efforts. Donohoe will start in January 2023.

Ricardo Reyes will oversee Global Communications & External Affairs after recently joining EQT full-time. He brings significant experience from his roles positioning Tesla, YouTube and most recently Dyson, where he was the Chief Communications Officer. In addition to his work in Silicon Valley, Reyes started his career in Washington DC, working at the White House and on policy initiatives. Born in Managua, Nicaragua, his diverse experience will be instrumental to ensure that the EQT brand supports the business and addresses an ever-expanding global audience.

EQT also announces the elevation to ExCom of Gustav Segerberg, an accomplished leader at EQT with responsibility for the firm’s Business Development efforts. Segerberg joined EQT in 2016 as part of the Capital Raising & Client Relations team after a decade as an investment banker. He became Head of Business Development in 2018. Segerberg has played a crucial role in the strategic development of EQT in recent years, including executing EQT’s IPO in 2019, and driving the combinations with BPEA, Exeter and LSP, as well as new product development.

“The newest members of EQT’s Executive Committee will equip EQT with an unmatched set of competencies, backgrounds, and perspectives to continue serving our global clients and partners,” said Christian Sinding, CEO & Managing Partner at EQT. “Suzanne joins us at a unique point in time with EQT having become a truly global firm, and she brings a broad range of leadership experiences to our team. I am very pleased that Ricardo has taken on the role of globalizing EQT’s brand and communications; and with the internal promotion of Gustav to the ExCom we are securing our continued development through M&A and new initiatives.”

The changes follow a decision on the part of Morten Hummelmose, who joined EQT in 2006, to step down. He served in a variety of roles over his tenure and most recently led the firm’s capital raising efforts. Hummelmose will remain a member of the EQT Foundation and be part of its Investment Committee.

“I extend my warmest gratitude to Morten for his significant contributions to EQT over many years, most recently as Head of CR,”  said Sinding.

Contact
Olof Svensson, Head of Shareholder Relations, +46 72 989 09 15
EQT Press Office, press@eqtpartners.com, +46 8 506 55 334

About EQT
EQT is a purpose-driven global investment organization focused on active ownership strategies. With a Nordic heritage and a global mindset, EQT has a track record of almost three decades of delivering consistent and attractive returns across multiple geographies, sectors and strategies. EQT has investment strategies covering all phases of a business’ development, from start-up to maturity. EQT today has EUR 114 billion in assets under management, within two business segments – Private Capital and Real Assets.

With its roots in the Wallenberg family’s entrepreneurial mindset and philosophy of long-term ownership, EQT is guided by a set of strong values and a distinct corporate culture. EQT manages and advises funds and vehicles that invest across the world with the mission to future-proof companies, generate attractive returns and make a positive impact with everything EQT does.

More info: www.eqtgroup.com
Follow EQT on LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram

DIF Capital Partners is pleased to announce the appointment of three partners, Zaina Ahmed-Karim, Tom Goossens and Vincent Liu.

The promotion of Tom and Vincent from managing director to partner is in response to their personal contributions to the strong development of the firm. Tom and Vincent, who joined DIF in 2014 and 2016 respectively, have been leading several landmark investments over the years and have played a key role in further building the presence of DIF in their respective markets. Tom has been covering the UK, Ireland and Scandinavia, Vincent North America.

Zaina joined DIF on the 1^st of September to succeed Robert Doekes as CFO. She will be responsible for finance and investor reporting, as well as tax, treasury, IT and operations. Zaina was previously CFO of Dasym, an investment management boutique firm. Prior to that, she spent 25 years at EY, of which 13 years as senior audit partner in the Financial Services group. She is a qualified chartered accountant and holds a Master’s degree in both Business Economics and Accountancy from the VU Amsterdam University, the Netherlands.

Robert Doekes retired as a partner after 13 years in his role as CFO. DIF is pleased to be able to continue to benefit from his experience and knowledge, given that he will stay active for DIF in several projects and advisory roles.

Managing partner Wim Blaasse said, “”We are very pleased to welcome Zaina, Tom and Vincent as partners of DIF. Zaina has now officially taken over the role of Robert as CFO. I’m confident her longstanding background and experience will be of great added value to DIF. At the same time, her appointment will further increase the diversity of our senior leadership team. We would like to express deep gratitude to Robert for his commitment and contribution to building a strong investment platform over the last 13 years. Tom and Vincent have already contributed substantially to where we are today and I am confident they will continue to play a crucial role in achieving the future success of the company.”

About DIF Capital Partners

DIF Capital Partners is a leading global independent investment manager, with ca. EUR 14 billion in assets under management across eleven closed-end infrastructure funds and several co-investment vehicles. DIF invests in infrastructure companies and assets located primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Australia through two complementary strategies:

• Traditional DIF funds, of which DIF Infrastructure VII is the latest vintage, target core infrastructure equity investments with long-term contracted or regulated income streams including public-private partnerships, concessions, utilities, and energy transition projects (incl. renewable energy).
• DIF CIF funds, of which DIF CIF III is the latest vintage, target equity investments in small to mid-sized core-plus infrastructure companies in the telecom, energy transition, and transportation sectors.

DIF Capital Partners has a team of over 200 professionals, based in eleven offices located in Amsterdam (Schiphol), Frankfurt, Helsinki, London, Luxembourg, Madrid, New York, Paris, Santiago, Sydney, and Toronto. For more information please visit www.dif.eu.

Contact DIF: Diederik Heinink, d.heinink@dif.eu

Bluegem Capital Partners LLP, a consumer specialist private equity firm, is pleased to announce that it has established an office in Luxembourg, expanded its artificial intelligence and portfolio management resources, and recruited new joiners to its investment and operations teams.

Establishing the Luxembourg office strengthens our senior operations team and ensures post-Brexit continuity of the provision of fund management services within the EU. Claire Burke, Managing Director Luxembourg, takes responsibility for Finance and IT functions in Luxembourg. Ben Crivelli, Managing Director Luxembourg, takes responsibility for Compliance and Risk Management functions in Luxembourg.  Maximilian Fritz, Legal Counsel Luxembourg, supports our in-house legal team with matters related to Luxembourg. Claire, Ben and Maximillian bring collectively 35 years of experience from Luxembourg financial services roles including legal counsel, ESG, finance and compliance. Additionally, Stephen Cooper, Financial Controller, joins the London-based operations team from Montagu where he was since 2012, working in the Investor Reporting and Portfolio & Insights teams.

Bluegem has strengthened its investment team with the recruitment of Marie Teissedre and Sebastian Bjeldskov who join the Pan European Team, highlighting Bluegem’s continued momentum in deploying its latest fund. Bluegem is currently investing from its third-generation fund which closed in February 2022 and is already nearly 60% invested in a diverse portfolio of five assets. Bluegem is focused on opportunities for investment in the consumer staples sector underpinned by strong secular megatrends.

Bluegem has built proprietary artificial intelligence tools to underpin investment decisions and accelerate value creation. Adding to this portfolio of digital expertise, Bluegem have engaged Farid Sarwari who is focused on data insight across the portfolio and Chris Hammond who brings over a decade of experience leading ecommerce transformations at leading consumer brands.

With the growth of the portfolio, Bluegem have also enhanced the portfolio management function focused on value creation and performance improvement. Pierre-Arthur Chatard brings experience from the Goldman Sachs Foundation, Alvarez & Marsal and Roland Berger, will predominantly consult across the French based portfolio companies. Meanwhile Carsten Steinburg, brings experience from Alvarez & Marsal and KPMG, and will predominantly consult across the DACH based portfolio companies. Pierre and Carsten join the Bluegem network of consultants and industry veterans from blue chip firms such as Amazon, Google and P&G to help partner companies scale sustainably.

Commenting on these appointments, Emilio Di Spiezio Sardo, Founding Partner, Bluegem said:

“We are delighted to welcome all our new joiners, who bring extensive experience and expertise which will enhance the Bluegem platform and position us well for long term growth. We are particularly excited to continue advancements in development of our Artificial Intelligence and Digital toolkit, which is an integral part of our investment lifecycle.”

About Bluegem Capital Partners LLP

Bluegem is a specialist consumer-focused private equity firm that partners with management teams and founders to accelerate growth of strong consumer brands. With a track record of investing across Europe through different economic cycles, industry and market conditions, Bluegem has refined their investment strategy to focus on resilient consumer segments benefiting from secular megatrends, including Beauty and Personal Care; Household Care; Food and Beverage; Baby Care; Pet Care; Home Décor; and Hobby and Craft. More information about Bluegem can be found at www.bluegemcp.com.

Ratos has appointed Jan Krepp as the new CEO of KVD. He joins the company from his role as CEO of SSEA AB, a subsidiary of SSEA Group AB. He will assume his new position immediately.

Jan Krepp has held leading operational and strategic roles in a number of companies in the Ratos Group since 2019. Current CEO Lars Nykvist has chosen to move on to new challenges outside Ratos.

“Jan Krepp is a goal-oriented, strong leader who has performed well in his previous positions both within and outside Ratos. With his distinct leadership, solid experience of company development and strong focus on sales, he is a very suitable new CEO for KVD. Ratos would also like to thank Lars Nykvist, who has now chosen to move on, for his four years as CEO, and wish him the best for the future,” says Anders Slettengren, Chairman of the Board of KVD and President Business Area Consumer at Ratos.

“I am very proud of the trust placed in me to lead KVD, Sweden’s largest online marketplace offering valuation and broker services for second-hand vehicles. In an increasingly complex business world in which all second-hand vehicle players are being challenged by strained supply chains in general and component shortages in particular, KVD’s brand remains strong. Combined with a unique business model and skilled employees, this creates excellent fundamental prerequisites for continued positive development,” says Jan Krepp, incoming CEO of KVD.

Jan Krepp will remain a Board member of SSEA AB.

About KVD
KVD is Sweden’s largest online marketplace offering valuation and broker services for second-hand vehicles (company cars and private cars), machines and heavy vehicles as well as sales of related products and services. KVD handles the entire transaction from client order to end customer and guarantees the quality of the brokered car by means of testing. KVD consists of Kvdbil, Sweden’s largest digital second-hand vehicle broker; Forsbergs Fritidscenter, Sweden’s largest mobile home retailer; Kvdpro, a broker of machines and heavy vehicles; and the car valuation companies Bilpriser and Smart 365. Each year, more than 26,000 second-hand vehicles, 1,600 mobile homes and 3,000 machines and heavy vehicles are sold using KVD. The company has approximately 200 employees and sales of approximately SEK 1,900m for the rolling 12-month period ending 30 June 2022. Ratos acquired KVD in 2010 and owns 100% of the company. www.kvd.se

For further information, please contact
Anders Slettengren, Chairman of the Board of KVD and President Business Area Consumer, Ratos, +46 72 589 89 00
Jan Krepp, incoming CEO, KVD, +46 70 146 32 47
Josefine Uppling, VP Communication, Ratos, +46 76 114 54 21

About Ratos
Ratos is a business group consisting of 15 companies divided into three business areas: Construction & Services, Consumer and Industry. In total 2021, the companies have approximately SEK 26 billion in net sales. Our business concept is to own and develop companies that are or can become market leaders. We have a distinct corporate culture and strategy – everything we do is based on our core values: Simplicity, Speed in execution and It’s All About People. We enable independent companies to excel by being part of something larger. People, leadership, culture and values are key focus areas.

The first email below was sent to Bridgewater’s clients on October 4, 2022, referencing the second email which was sent to employees earlier that day.

Below please find a note we sent earlier today to the company announcing that we finalized our transition. As you may recall, in February we informed you that we had finalized the transition agreement, and between then and now, the firm and Ray worked to complete the necessary and required legal, regulatory and investor requirements. With this final step now complete, I wanted you to be among the first to know.

As we’ve done all along, we have updated you on the steps we’ve taken toward completing our multiyear journey to evolve from a founder-led boutique to a lasting, employee-driven institution. Over the years, Ray has transitioned day-to-day management to new leaders, investment oversight to the Investment Committee that he mentored as CIO the past two years, and majority ownership of the firm to a broader set of shareholders, while remaining a meaningful owner. This last mile of the transition was a culmination of several important milestones which made this possible — most notably, in December, we announced the formation of our Operating Board of Directors (made up of our co-CIOs, Outside Directors, Employee Directors and CEOs) and in January we announced the Board’s selection of Nir Bar Dea and Mark Bertolini as our co-CEOs. With this transition now complete, coupled with our strong alpha performance, this year has been a very rewarding time for the firm; one which we are privileged to share with you.

Bridgewater’s strength has and will always remain a deep bench of investment and advisory talent. The sum of those individuals, led by our co-CEOs and co-CIOs, Greg Jensen and Bob Prince, and the systematization of our investment process, is bigger and more impactful than any individual. As Bridgewater embarks on its newest chapter, we are honored to write it with you.

Kind regards,
Kyle Delaney, President and Chief Commercial Officer

***

Team –

The transition of Bridgewater from Ray is done!

Since our February announcement below, we’ve been working through the many legal steps needed to close the transaction. On Friday, we finished the work, signed the papers, and closed. The control of the company now sits with our Operating Board. There is nothing left to do on Ray’s transition. It’s done.

Friday’s step followed Ray’s transition out of management in 2017, the formation of our Investment Committee in the summer of 2020 (led by Greg, Bob, and several other key investors and asset class leads) and Ray’s shift to focus on mentoring that group then. Since we formed the Investment Committee, we’ve had strong performance across our alpha strategies, delivering for those clients when they needed it, with our next generation leading the charge.

It’s hard to overstate the importance of this moment for Bridgewater and Ray. Ray founded Bridgewater 47 years ago and, over a decade ago, set out on this journey to transition it. This process wasn’t easy and we didn’t always agree, but together, we’ve now finished something that very few firms or founders have accomplished, shifting from being a founder-led boutique to being an enduring institution led successfully by the next generation. Looking forward, Ray will continue as a CIO mentor, an Operating Board member, and will remain an important part of our community. On a personal note, on behalf of our entire community, we’d like to thank Ray for all that he’s done and is doing for Bridgewater and to assure him that we’re all going to work our hearts out to make the next chapter at least as good as the previous.

For new employees who don’t know what all this is about or for long-tenured employees who want to go down memory lane, we just updated our website to include a page about Our Founder.

Cheers!

Nir Bar Dea & Mark Bertolini, Co-CEOs

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