Capital Trust Ltd Registered in England. Registered Number: 941064. Registered Office: 49 Mount Street, London
W1K 2SD. Capital Trust Ltd is Authorised & Regulated by the Financial Services Authority.
Press Release
Date: 11 October 2007
Capital Trust announced the exit from its last remaining investment in Mount Mezzanine, its European mezzanine
fund, achieving a 20% IRR on the fund as a whole.
Capital Trust formed Mount Mezzanine in 2004 to participate in mid to large cap European LBO transactions in the
€500 million to €2 billion range. The fund was managed by George Shweiry and Olga Aburdene and financed
acquisitions sponsored by some of Europe’s largest private equity funds including Permira, Apax, Advent and
Charterhouse. During the life of Mount Mezzanine, Capital Trust collaborated with various lead arrangers
including Royal Bank of Scotland, HSBC, Credit Suisse, BNP Paribas and Deutsche Bank.
In a statement to the press, George Shweiry, head of the Group’s European investment activity, said “our
conservative strategy led us to participate in the European LBO space between May 2004 and October 2005, during
which time the market offered superior risk-adjusted returns. As margins were squeezed and covenant quality
deteriorated, we stayed away from deals until now”. He added, “we are closely watching the credit crunch and its
effects on the LBO market and believe that we are about to witness a return to reasonable structures and adequate
pricing. We are currently setting up a new fund to take advantage of this opportunity which will be Mount
Mezzanine II”.
Olga Aburdene, corporate finance executive and co-fund manager of the Group’s mezzanine activity added,
“Capital Trust enjoys excellent relationships with banks and financial institutions and has the experience and
flexibility to go in and out of specific market opportunities in a most timely and profitable manner”.
Capital Trust is a financial institution formed in 1985 and based in London, New York, Washington and Beirut.
Mount Mezzanine II is to be launched before the year end.
Copyright © 2011 Capital Trust Group. All rights reserved.