Buyout funds increasingly sell their portfolio companies to other buyout funds. These secondary buyouts (SBOs) underperform primary buyouts. Yet, only SBOs made late in the investment period underperform, consistent with funds using SBOs to sometimes “go for broke”. After a fund invests in...

Buyout funds increasingly sell their portfolio companies to other buyout funds. These secondary buyouts (SBOs) underperform primary buyouts. Yet, only SBOs made late in the investment period underperform, consistent with funds using SBOs to sometimes “go for broke”. After a fund invests in...

Private equity firms increasingly sell companies to each other in secondary buyouts (SBOs), raising concerns which we examine using novel data sets. Our evidence paints a nuanced picture. SBOs underperform and destroy value for investors when they are made by buyers under pressure to spend....

In 1997, France Telecom went through a partial privatization. Using a database that tracks over 200,000 eligible participants, we analyze employees’ decisions whether to participate; how much to invest; and what stock alternatives to select. The results are broadly consistent with a...

In 1997, France T‚l‚com, the state-owned French telephone company, went through a partial privatization. The government offered current and prior France T‚l‚com employees the opportunity to buy portfolios of shares with various combinations of discounts, required holding periods,...