Ipreo, a data and market intelligence provider owned by Blackstone and Goldman Sachs, has acquired iLEVEL, a provider of portfolio monitoring and analytics to financial services companies including private equity firms. iLEVEL will be merged with Ipreo’s Alternative Assets group to form a new Private Capital Markets division which will be led by Kevin Black, current CEO of iLEVEL.
iLEVEL offers cloud-based services that provide data collection, investment analysis, and performance reporting. The company serves private equity firms; middle market fund managers; buyout, energy, infrastructure, distressed, mezzanine, venture, growth equity, real estate, and credit funds; and co-investors, funds of funds, fund administrators, valuation service providers, banks, and institutional investors. Headquartered in New York, iLEVEL was founded by Blackstone in 2006 and was spun off as an independent company in 2010 (www.ilevelsolutions.com).
The owners of iLEVEL include Blackstone, The Carlyle Group, Duff & Phelps, Hamilton Lane, Swift River Investments, and Egis Capital Partners. Hamilton Lane and Duff & Phelps have agreed to roll significant portions of their iLEVEL ownership into an investment stake in Ipreo. In addition, both Hamilton Lane and Duff & Phelps will remain aligned with Ipreo’s new Private Capital Markets division as strategic partners.
“iLEVEL has been at the forefront of linking GPs and LPs through greater communication, improved connectivity and enhanced data transparency,” said Erik Hirsch, chief investment officer of Hamilton Lane. “We view this strategic alliance as the next positive step in furthering those initiatives and believe the new Private Capital Markets division will greatly benefit from iLEVEL’s technology, scaled commercial infrastructure and strong client presence in the private markets.”
Ipreo is a provider of financial services technology, data and analytical services to sell-side professionals, finance officers at private and public companies, institutional investors, and asset managers. Ipreo was acquired in August 2014 by Blackstone and Goldman Sachs and shortly thereafter expanded into the Alternative Assets space with the acquisitions of Shareholder InSite and ClearMomentum. Today, Ipreo has more than 800 employees and is headquartered in New York (www.ipreo.com).
“We have long seen a need for greater transparency in the alternative assets space. The acquisition and integration of a company of iLEVEL’s caliber is a clear demonstration of our commitment to deliver high-quality, innovative solutions to the private capital markets,” said Kevin Marcus, President and COO of Ipreo. “Ipreo will provide a combination of platforms, content and expertise, empowering us to bring unique solutions to market.”
“As a leader in providing world-class data solutions for the private markets, we are excited to become part of Ipreo and to further grow the company’s participation in this asset class,” said Kevin Black, CEO of iLEVEL.
© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 7-23-15
