PE funds looking for friends in high places

Private equity firm The Carlyle Group is said to be hiring a global head of lobbying. One recruitment consultant says rival firms may be moved to do the same.

"Right now, most private equity funds don't have a specialist lobbying person," says Ben Aymé at search firm the Veni Group. "But with funds deciding to open their books and coming under more public scrutiny, this could change."

Until now, Aymé says funds have used big name special advisors, their own managing partners, or industry bodies such as the European Venture Capital Association to encourage governments and regulators to treat them favourably. Carlyle, for example, has employed an impressive roster of advisors including George Bush Senior and former UK Prime Minister John Major.

The move to employ a lobbying specialist may be partly down to cost, speculates Aymé: "It's probably cheaper to employ one person than three ex-politicians."

Last year Carlyle spent over 218,000 lobbying on defence related issues according to the Financial Times. The paper reports that its decision to hire a lobbyist partly reflects regulatory challenges in China.

Aymé says it also owes something to the industry's increased profile: after several record years, private equity firms are taking centre stage rather than lurking in the wings. And with funds like CVC Capital, Blackstone, Carlyle and Texas Pacific Group launching publicly traded vehicles, the industry is no longer as able to hide behind a mantle of secrecy as it was in the past.