
Former NBA player Yao Ming may have been a star on the basketball court, but he moves onto an unfamiliar arena - the private equity arena - following reports he has bought and rebranded Chongqing Yufu Assets Management Group.
前美國(guó)職業(yè)籃球聯(lián)賽(NBA)球員姚明在籃球場(chǎng)上或許是個(gè)明星,但現(xiàn)在他開(kāi)始涉足私募股權(quán)這個(gè)他并不熟悉的領(lǐng)域了。有報(bào)道稱,姚明接手了一家基金管理公司,并將公司更名為重慶渝富弘遠(yuǎn)股權(quán)投資基金管理公司(Chongqing Yufu Assets Management Group)。
He joins a club of other celebrities that have also moved into the private equity world, including U2 singer Bono, who co-founded media, entertainment and technology investment firm Elevation Partners, and former NFL quarterback Steve Young, now a managing partner and co-founder of Huntsman Gay Global Capital.
其他明星也有移師私募股權(quán)業(yè)的,如U2樂(lè)隊(duì)主唱波諾(Bono)聯(lián)合創(chuàng)立了專注于媒體、娛樂(lè)和科技投資的私募股權(quán)基金Elevation Partners,美國(guó)國(guó)家橄欖球聯(lián)盟(NFL)前四分衛(wèi)楊(Steve Young)聯(lián)合創(chuàng)立了私募股權(quán)基金Huntsman Gay Global Capital,現(xiàn)為該基金執(zhí)行合伙人。姚明現(xiàn)在也加入了這些明星的隊(duì)伍。
Although athletes and celebrities may not always have financial background, they do bring star power, especially when it comes to fundraising.
雖然運(yùn)動(dòng)員和明星可能并不總是擁有金融背景,但他們確實(shí)會(huì)帶來(lái)一定的明星效應(yīng),特別是在籌款方面。
'One thing famous sports and music figures bring to a private equity firm is brand awareness, which certainly cannot hurt fundraising,' said Bruno Roy, managing partner of McKinsey & Co.'s office in Beijing. 'Everyone will take a meeting with Bono, Steve Young and Yao Ming.'
麥肯錫(McKinsey & Co.)駐北京的執(zhí)行合伙人羅頤(Bruno Roy)說(shuō),知名運(yùn)動(dòng)員和音樂(lè)人給私募股權(quán)公司帶來(lái)的一大好處就是品牌知名度,這對(duì)籌款來(lái)說(shuō)當(dāng)然是有百益無(wú)一害的,每個(gè)人都想找機(jī)會(huì)與波諾、楊和姚明見(jiàn)面。
Indeed, the mere mention of Mr. Yao could also be good for his recently-bought firm's deal sourcing, said Alberto Forchielli, a founding partner of Mandarin Capital Partners. Mr Fortchielli noted, however, that '[Mr. Yao] alone can spot good opportunities, but can still lose money if the deal is poorly executed.'
曼達(dá)林基金(Mandarin Capital Partner)創(chuàng)始合伙人福爾基耶利(Alberto Forchielli)說(shuō),對(duì)他近期買下的這家機(jī)構(gòu)來(lái)說(shuō),僅僅是提到姚明這個(gè)名字就有可能為招攬業(yè)務(wù)帶來(lái)好處。不過(guò)他也指出,單憑姚明一人是可以發(fā)現(xiàn)好機(jī)遇,但如果項(xiàng)目執(zhí)行得不好,可能仍會(huì)虧錢。
And while Mr. Yao may have a strong track record on the court, all that's going to matter is his track record in the private equity world.
雖然姚明在球場(chǎng)上可能有著輝煌的過(guò)往,但現(xiàn)在最重要的是他在私募股權(quán)界的業(yè)績(jī)記錄。
'If he can grasp deal structuring concepts quickly and can intelligently participate in discussions, he could be a tremendous asset,' said one Beijing-based venture capital investor, noting that other celebrities have a history of mixed results when it comes to investing.
一位駐北京的風(fēng)投人士說(shuō),如果姚明能很快領(lǐng)會(huì)交易架構(gòu)的概念并且能理智地參與相關(guān)討論,他可能會(huì)成為私募基金的一筆寶貴財(cái)富。這位投資人指出,其他明星在投資方面的表現(xiàn)有好有壞。
On top of this, returns from sport-related deals are 'generally lousy,' said Mr. Forchielli, highlighting that 'private equity always stays away from them.' He added that in European soccer, investors have lost money 'big time,' pointing to this month's sale of Manchester United, which only raised $300 million from an expected $500 million.
福爾基耶利說(shuō),與運(yùn)動(dòng)有關(guān)的交易回報(bào)一般都很糟糕。他強(qiáng)調(diào)說(shuō),私募股權(quán)總是離這些交易遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)的。他還說(shuō),投資者在歐洲足球那里虧了大錢。本月,英國(guó)足球俱樂(lè)部曼徹斯特聯(lián)隊(duì)(Manchester United)上市僅籌到了3億美元,而他們本來(lái)期望能籌到5億美元。
Although the jury is still out on Mr. Yao's move into the private equity world, 'his experience in dealing with locker room dynamics while at the Houston Rockets will serve him well when dealing with fractious corporate boards,' said Tom Tsao, founder of Shanghai-based Gobi Partners.
雖然姚明進(jìn)軍私募股權(quán)業(yè)結(jié)果如何現(xiàn)在還不得而知,但位于上海的風(fēng)投企業(yè)戈壁合伙人有限公司(Gobi Partners)創(chuàng)始人曹嘉泰說(shuō),姚明在休斯頓火箭隊(duì)(Houston Rockets)衣帽間里與人打交道的經(jīng)驗(yàn)應(yīng)該會(huì)讓他有能力與那些難對(duì)付的公司董事會(huì)打交道。
'He's got personal experience in building a global brand [his own] that many companies will find useful. And if he can dunk over Shaq, I'm sure he can handle a stubborn CEO,' said Mr. Tsao.
曹嘉泰說(shuō),姚明在打造他個(gè)人全球品牌方面有其獨(dú)到的經(jīng)驗(yàn),很多公司會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn)這一點(diǎn)很有用,如果他能蓋大鯊魚(yú)的帽,我相信他也能與固執(zhí)的CEO們周旋。
News of Mr. Yao's move was previously reported by Reuters.
姚明進(jìn)軍私募股權(quán)業(yè)的消息此前路透社(Reuters)曾報(bào)道過(guò)。