Below are some details about the main independent trading houses in alphabetical order. Information is taken from their respective websites and Reuters.
Glencore International
Founded in 1974, Swiss-based Glencore International supplies a wide range of commodities -- including metals, minerals, crude oil, oil products, coal and agricultural products. Turnover for fiscal 2008 was $ 152.2 bn. Initially, Glencore focused on the physical marketing of ferrous and non-ferrous metals, minerals and crude oil. It then expanded into oil products and coal and in 1982 acquired an established grain marketing company. Glencore has three main business groups -- metals and minerals, energy products and agricultural products. Together with subsidiaries, it has investments in a wide range of commodity production and says it is one of the largest non-integrated oil suppliers by volume.
Gunvor International
Gunvor International specializes in the trade, transport and storage of oil and petroleum products. It was founded in 1997 by Swedish oil trader Torbjorn Torknqvist and Russian businessman Gennady Timchenko. Gunvor handles about a third of Russian crude exports. In March, it said it had acquired an oil terminal under construction in the Russian Baltic Sea port of Ust Luga. Also in March 2009, Gunvor confirmed it had a contract with Ventbunkers, the operator of the Latvian Ventspils oil terminal on the Baltic Sea, for the discharge, storage and transit of middle distillates.
Mercuria Energy Group
Swiss-owned Mercuria Energy Group ranks itself as one of the world's five largest independent energy traders with turnover in 2008 of more than $ 46 bn. Its product range spans crude oil, fuel oil, middle distillates, naphtha and gasoline. It also trades power, natural gas, coal, biodiesel, vegetable oils, and carbon emissions. The firm has more than 30 million barrels of total storage capacity around the world and is active in shipping markets. It has upstream investments, including Orchard Petroleum in California. Mercuria is also building a biofuels plant at the Oiltanking terminal in the Port of Amsterdam, due for completion in 2010. The company owns the Eurodek Terminal oil storage facility in Tallinn, Estonia and the Mercuria Terminals Flushing, in Vlissingen, the Netherlands.
Trafigura
Trafigura had turnover of $ 73 billion in 2008. The firm trades, ships and stores a range of commodities, including crude oil, refined products, concentrates and refined metals. It has 1,900 staff in 37 countries. The firm has access to more than 30 mm barrels of storage facilities. In March 2009, it secured a $ 520 mm credit facility. In metals, Trafigura owns and operates concentrate and storage facilities and two mines, one in Peru and one in Mexico. It also has interests in a smelter and various publicly listed mining entities. It owns Galena Asset Management, with more than $ 600 million under management.
Vitol Group
Founded in 1966, Vitol Group's turnover reached $ 191.17 billion in 2008. The privately held company has revenues of more than $ 100 billion. It ships around 200 million tons of oil a year, and also has interests across the energy spectrum, including crude oil and products, gas, power, coal, carbon emissions, shipping, derivatives, ethanol, chemicals, non-ferrous metals and sugar. Vitol owns more than 4 million cm of storage throughout the world and plans further investment in this area. It also has oil exploration and production assets, which include operations in the Philippines, Congo, Ghana, Nigeria, the UK, Russia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan. Vitol has investments in processing capacity in Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates and an LPG splitter in Nigeria. In April 2009, Vitol bought up the remaining share of a clean energy project portfolio it co-owned with developers ICECAP.
Below are some details about the world’s top private equity investment houses. Information is taken from their respective websites and Reuters.
The Carlyle Group
The Carlyle Group is one of the world's largest private equity firms, with more than $87.9 billion under management. With 65 funds across four investment disciplines (buyouts, growth capital, real estate and leveraged finance), Carlyle combines global vision with local insight, relying on a top-flight team of 450+ investment professionals operating out of offices in 19 countries to uncover superior opportunities in North America, Europe, Asia, Australia, the Middle East/North Africa and Latin America.
Kohlberg Kravis Roberts
Established in 1976, KKR is a leading global alternative asset manager. Led by its founders, Henry Kravis and George Roberts, who are pioneers of the leveraged buyout industry, KKR specializes in large, complex buyouts. KKR is a global firm with industry-leading private equity experience, in-depth industry knowledge, sophisticated processes for growing and improving businesses, and a strong culture committed to teamwork and sharing information across offices in the U.S., Europe, Asia, and Australia.
Goldman Sachs Principal Investment Group
The technology group within Goldman Sachs Principal Investment Area invests in innovative technology companies across the many stages of a company's lifecycle by providing the strategic insights and global network of Goldman Sachs’ Investment Banking, Investment Research and Securities Divisions; Offering access to the knowledge and expertise of one of the most sophisticated information technology organizations on Wall Street and Leveraging our extensive network of contacts across many industries within the technology landscape.
The Blackstone Group
Founded in 1985 by financiers Stephen A. Schwarzman and Peter G. Peterson with a balance sheet of $400,000 and a clear vision of an independent, conflict-free, client-focused firm whose interests would be closely aligned with those of its clients and investors, Blackstone is today one of the largest and most prominent private equity firms in the world.
Texas Pacific Group
Texas Pacific Group (TPG) is today a leading global private investment firm with approximately $45 billion of capital under management across a family of funds. Since the firm's founding in 1992, TPG’s investment philosophy has been to create value by investing in change - change created by industry trends, economic cycles or specific company circumstances. Our tradition of providing unique investment insight and value-added operating capabilities to companies undergoing change, as well as our comfort in dealing with complexity and distressed companies, differentiates TPG from many traditional private investment firms.
In addition to the usual suspects as per the above such as Blackstone, Goldman and Carlyle, below are some details about some of the main real estate investment groups operating on a global basis; in alphabetical order. Information is taken from their respective websites and Reuters.
Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing
Since 1969, the longest uninterrupted real estate industry presence of any Wall Street firm, Morgan Stanley has consistently supported its expansion from roots as a mortgage/asset brokerage business through the introduction of new products and services, such as public debt and equity capital raising, real estate investment management and mortgage lending.
AREA (formerly Apollo)
AREA Property Partners was founded in 1993 by William Mack and the private equity firm Apollo Global Management, LLC as Apollo Real Estate Advisors. Today, AREA is an independent private partnership of real estate professionals with a rare blend of hands-on real estate experience and sophisticated capital markets expertise. AREA has overseen the investment of multiple real estate funds and joint ventures, through which it has invested over $9 billion in more than 465 transactions with an aggregate value in excess of $40 billion. Headquartered in New York City, and with U.S. offices in Los Angeles and Atlanta, as well as international offices in London, Luxembourg and Mumbai, the AREA funds target a broad range of opportunistic, value-added and debt investments in real estate assets and portfolios throughout North America, Europe, and India.
Colony Capital
Colony Capital, LLC is a private, international investment firm focusing primarily on real estate-related assets and operating companies with a strategic dependence on such assets across the globe. In the nineteen years since its inception, from a single Los Angeles-based office in 1991, Colony has invested over $39 billion in over 8,800 assets, raised and managed $15.8 billion of equity capital on behalf of over 200 institutional investors.
Beacon Capital Partners
Beacon Capital Partners, LLC is a Boston-based real estate investment firm with a skilled team of real estate professionals experienced in acquisitions/dispositions, asset management, development, finance and accounting. The Company was formed in 1998, and is led by Alan Leventhal, Chairman and CEO.
Tishman Speyer
Tishman Speyer is one of the leading owners, developers, operators, and managers of first-class real estate in the world, having managed a portfolio of assets since its inception of over 116 million square feet and more than 92,000 residential units in major metropolitan areas across the United States, Europe, Latin America and Asia.
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