Hamilton James, who is Blackstone's (NYSE: BX) chief operating officer, is a seasoned veteran of the private equity world. He joined DLJ in 1975 and created the firm's merchant banking division in 1985. When DLJ sold out to Credit Suisse (NYSE: CS), he spent a couple year's as a high level executive there.
So, no doubt, his musings hold a lot of weight. In fact, he recently spoke at the Dow Jones' Private Equity Analyst conference.
His view on things? Well, things aren't so bad in the private equity world. Interestingly enough, he thinks Wall Street will be able to clear the $300+ billion in buyout loans fairly quickly.
True, the buyout volume will not be to the extent that we've seen over the past couple years. But, we should still see a good amount of activity. What's more, well-capitalized firms like Blackstone should have an advantage – and snag companies at good valuations.
And, of course, there's still lots of opportunity in emerging markets, such as China. After all, the Chinese government is a big-time investor Blackstone and is probably motivated to get some deal flow for its partner.
Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook
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