Case Study: Long Pre-Deal Work

Imagine being in your early 30s, launching a private equity fund, and raising $450 million for your first fund. (No track record. No rich father or uncle.)

Urs Wietlisbach, one of the three co-founders, led client relationships and fundraising, pushed proactive deal sourcing and thematic research, and kept the team focused on pensioners as the ultimate client.

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You'll learn:
00:00 Why this episode & who it’s for
00:36 From “stocks & bonds are boring” to real assets; early AUM context
01:25 Independence as the goal; raising $450M with no track record
02:20 Three complementary founders is better than one “perfect” entrepreneur
03:12 Leaving Goldman: the coffee invite, risk, and family pushback
04:35 “Fill your backpack”: learn aggressively, then have the courage to leave
05:43 The costly fundraising mistake: paying an upfront “rainmaker” (and why never again)
06:08 Sponsor: CapitalPad (a marketplace for investors and acquisition entrepreneurs)
06:40 Why they IPO’d in 2006: talent, direct deals, and Asian credibility
10:05 Operating public, thinking private: ignore the ticker, focus long term
10:30 “We are responsible for dreams”: pensions as the true client
11:05 Proactive diligence: working 12–36 months before a sale is announced
12:05 Urs’s role today: fundraising, client relationships, and a 100+ person marketing team
12:45 The PE model now: ~53% equity / 47% debt; returns from business building
13:35 Edge vs. competitors: thematic sourcing and pre-work win auctions
14:40 Example: German deal log, 582 days of prep before the bank book
16:05 Returns stack vs. mega-peers; tailwinds, management being everything
16:36 Sponsor: ETA Europe newsletter (weekly EU ETA deal flow & analysis)
17:13 Four thematic teams: Healthcare, IT, Goods/Products, Services
18:00 Healthcare thesis in action: U.S. physiotherapy roll-up playbook
19:10 From 100 to 600+ clinics; EBITDA from ~$38M to ~$110M in four years
19:56 Why PE has outperformed publics: information, incentives, not leverage
21:00 Compensation design: “eat what you kill” + shared carry across teams
21:50 Hiring from industry, not just finance; sweat equity for managers
22:40 Heavyweight chairs matter: PCI Pharma example (4x MOIC)
23:40 What makes entrepreneurs succeed
24:45 Play to strengths, fix fast: people business above all

Support our Sponsors:
CapitalPad: https://capitalpad.com/
ETA Europe: https://legacy-partners-newsletter.beehiiv.com/

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