Responsive: Deeb Brothers_ Merchant Banking & Private Equity

To begin this brief it is a necessity for me to gain an understanding of what Merchant Banking and Private equity Firms actually are. 

Looking into what Private Equity firms are_

Definitions:

A private equity firm is an investment manager that makes investments in the private equity of operating companies through a variety of loosely affiliated investment strategies including leveraged buyout, venture capital, and growth capital. Often described as a financial sponsor, each firm will raise funds that will be invested in accordance with one or more specific investment strategies.

Typically, a private equity firm will raise pools of capital, or private equity funds that supply the equity contributions for these transactions. Private equity firms will receive a periodic management fee as well as a share in the profits earned (carried interest) from each private equity fund managed.

Private equity firms, with their investors, will acquire a controlling or substantial minority position in a company and then look to maximize the value of that investment. Private equity firms generally receive a return on their investments through one of the following avenues: 

• an initial public offering (IPO) — shares of the company are offered to the public, typically providing a partial immediate realization to the financial sponsor as well as a public market into which it can later sell additional shares;
• a merger or acquisition — the company is sold for either cash or shares in another company;
• a Recapitalization — cash is distributed to the shareholders (in this case the financial sponsor) and its private equity funds either from cash flow generated by the company or through raising debt or other securities to fund the distribution.

Private equity firms characteristically make longer-hold investments in target industry sectors or specific investment areas where they have expertise. Private equity firms and investment funds should not be confused with hedge fund firms which typically make shorter-term investments in securities and other more liquid assets within an industry sector but with less direct influence or control over the operations of a specific company. Where private equity firms take on operational roles to manage risks and achieve growth through long term investments, hedge funds more frequently act as short term traders of securities betting on both the up and down sides of a business or industry sector's financial health.

What is a Merchant Banker

A merchant bank is a financial institution which provides capital to companies in the form of share ownership instead of loans. A merchant bank also provides advisory on corporate matters to the firms they lend to. In the United Kingdom, the term "merchant bank" refers to aninvestment bank.

A bank that deals mostly in (but is not limited to) international finance, long-term loans for companies and underwriting. Merchant banks do not provide regular banking services to the general public.

Read more: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/m/merchantbank.asp#ixzz2MEVuQVeT

Research into Existing Merchant Bankers looking into what services they offer.

I have decided that i should look at merchant bankers in general and look at what each has to offer to see what attributes each one offers this will inform me on what businesses look for in their bankers. 

 From looking at a these websites i have found that merchant bankers are selected because of the services they provide for example all of the bankers work around the fact that they offer the upmost security this is somthing i will work around for my design conveying a message of security and stability.