Permira Sees Private Capital Opportunities in Volatile Markets

(Bloomberg) -- Permira Holdings Ltd. is seeing opportunities for private capital at a time of higher market volatility.

“When the markets are really weak, that is when the opportunities emerge for private equity,” Executive Chairman Kurt Björklund said in a Bloomberg Television interview on Wednesday. “It is easy to forget our job is to look for good value when there’s less capital chasing good opportunities.”

Investment opportunities could emerge when owners or companies are looking for liquidity or even to sell, Björklund said, adding that his firm has a lot of capital to deploy.

In Europe, governments are ramping up military spending to bolster security after pressure from US President Donald Trump for allies to contribute more. That is making the sector more attractive and significant, according to Björklund. Permira has not traditionally invested in defense, he added.

“Just by simply unplugging the US implicit security guarantee, if you will, or at least creating sufficient uncertainty that will cause Europeans as we are seeing now, just pouring hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars into that segment,” he said. “It is overdue. But, opportunities will come from that too.”

Permira manages about €80 billion ($85 billion) with offices across Europe, the US and Asia. Björklund, who joined the firm in 1996, became executive chairman last year in a leadership reshuffle.

“This year is going to be marked by extreme volatility,” said Björklund. “We have seen that the last couple of months. It’s going to continue. I’m not sure that is the right environment to look for stable dealmaking.”