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Private equity co-investments

Co-investments can be an efficient way for investors to gain exposure to selective buyout deals at compelling economic advantage. Both partners and borrowers can achieve their strategic goals through a direct noncontrolling ownership stake made in a company alongside a private equity firm or sponsor.

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Why co-investments?

 

Co-investment opportunities surface when an acquisition target requires more capital than a sponsor chooses to provide from its primary fund alone. By inviting co-investors to participate, sponsors can execute larger transactions while maintaining appropriate fund sizing and diversification, as well as operating control. 

Compelling economic advantage associated with the lower cost of direct investing

Access to high-conviction managers and their investments in prized portfolio companies

Diversification achieved by building balanced sector exposure on a deal-by-deal basis

Muted J-curve effect that accompanies a quicker pace of capital deployment compared with primary fund commitments  

Information edge attained by working alongside a sponsor on a live transaction 

Strengthened sponsor relationships developed through connection, trust, and collaboration

An LP’s guide to a reckoning in private equity

In a transforming market landscape, sector specialization and mastery of generative AI are emerging as key differentiators for private equity.

Learn more

Webinar

Co-investment funds—opportunities, challenges, and drivers of successful portfolio construction

Join our private equity co-investment experts Rajiv Bakshi and Brian Albert as they discuss where co-investments fit into LPs’ portfolios and what their benefits are.

Register now
Important disclosures

The opinions expressed above are those of Manulife Investment Management and are subject to change based on market and other conditions. No investment strategy or risk management technique can guarantee returns or eliminate risk in any market environment. Diversification or asset allocation does not guarantee a profit or protect against the risk of a loss in any market. 

Past performance does not guarantee future results.

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What sets us apart

Discerning value

We review a significant number of co-investment opportunities and selectively invest in market-leading companies alongside our sponsors, leveraging our primary funds relationships to provide investors access to a diversified portfolio of high-quality, mostly middle market companies at attractive fees.

Curating our portfolio to precision

When considering investments, we begin with two key objectives in mind: appropriate portfolio construction and the fit between the sponsor’s demonstrated area of expertise and the investment opportunity.

Leveraging our sponsor network

As multidecade investors in private equity and credit, we put our general partner (GP)-intensive network of relationships to work each day—deep connections across the sponsor community that have flourished, resulting in an information advantage.

Differentiating our sourcing

Our presence in primary funds investing opens doors to co-investment deal flow. A comprehensive lineup of private equity and credit capabilities—including secondaries, junior capital, and senior credit—further extends and differentiates our deal sourcing.

Co-investing experience facilitates efficient execution

With extensive shared direct deal experience consistent with our strategy since its inception in 2005, members of our team have worked closely together for years, enabling us to evaluate and execute co-investment opportunities efficiently and effectively—an essential element of a successful co-investment program. 

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Our portfolio 

We execute alongside proven sponsors in opportunities aligned with their areas of expertise to produce private equity co-investments that are an attractive source of expected investment returns and a highly efficient way for investors to gain targeted exposure to leveraged buyouts.

Read about our latest co-investment fund

$3.5B

in capital committed since 20061

167

co-investments

79

sponsors

Data as of March 31, 2024.

1 Represents equity co-investments made by the PE&C team on behalf of the Manulife Investors and managed third party accounts since inception of the Equity Co-Investment Strategy in 2006. The Primary Funds and Equity Co-Investment Strategies include deals executed by the Asia team.

We look for businesses with

Strong value propositions

Differentiated product and service offerings

Industry leaders in sectors with high barriers to entry

Leading in industries with limited potential for new entrants or substitute offerings

Flexbility and growth

Value creation through debt reduction even if growth or cost reduction strategies don’t materialize immediately

Multiple value creation levers

More than one path to generating a strong investment outcome

Equity co-investment capital solutions

Our clients benefit from targeted, noncontrolling equity investments in established, well-positioned businesses sponsored by top private equity funds and led by experienced management teams. With deep and wide-ranging industry experience, we co-invest alongside private equity sponsors and prioritise the investments that best fit the capabilities, resources, and track record of the private equity firm acting as controlling owner.

Investment criteria

We seek to support companies with the following characteristics:

  • Headquartered in North America or Europe
  • Involvement of an operationally oriented sponsor
  • Proven management teams
  • Meaningful competitive position in target markets
  • Favorable free cash flow generation with the capacity for significant growth
  • Operating and financial flexibility to manage through economic cycles
  • Demonstrated ability to grow

Why partner with Manulife Investment Managment?

Our investment team has deep knowledge across all major industries of focus for private equity firms.

  • Investment monitoring role tailored to our ownership stake in the business
  • Reliance on the controlling PE sponsor to effectively oversee the strategic direction of the company and execute against the value creation plan established for the investment
  • Certain protective rights that include preemptive rights, tag-along and registration rights, as well as certain other minority protections
  • An investment horizon of 5 to 7 years with the ability to hold for longer
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Our team

Our co-investment leadership team members average over two decades of direct investing experience, including an average of 17 years at Manulife Investment Management.

Vipon Ghai, CPA, CMA, CFA

Global Head of Private Equity and Credit

Vipon is responsible for the team that oversees global private equity, junior credit, secondaries, and private credit investments. ​He joined the firm in 2002 and has more than two decades of experience in private equity, four years in corporate and investment banking, and three years of operational experience. Vipon has served as a board director on several public and private companies in the United States and Canada, and he holds the Chartered Financial Analyst, Certified Management Accountant, and Certified Public Accountant designations. 

  • Education: B.B.A., Wilfrid Laurier University 
  • Joined the company: 2002
  • Began career: 1991
Vipon Ghai, CPA, CMA, CFA

Scott Garfield

Senior Managing Director, Head of North America Private Equity

Scott has overall responsibility for the firm’s North American junior credit, private equity funds, and equity co-investment programs. Prior to joining the firm, he was a partner at FinanStar Group, a boutique investment bank. Scott’s background also includes numerous merger-and-acquisition assignments and corporate finance transactions while serving in Wachovia’s capital markets group.

  • Education: B.A., Economics, Williams College; M.B.A., Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business
  • Joined the company: 2002
  • Began career: 1988
Scott Garfield

Rajiv Bakshi, CBV, CFA, CPA, CA

Managing Director, Private Equity & Credit

Rajiv is responsible for sourcing, evaluating, negotiating, and monitoring junior credit and private equity investments. Prior to joining Manulife Capital—now operating as Manulife Investment Management—in 2002, he was with KPMG, where he provided valuation and transaction advisory services primarily to private equity investors. Additionally, Rajiv has served as a director on the boards of several companies and on advisory boards of investment funds in Canada and the United States. Rajiv holds the Chartered Business Valuator, Chartered Financial Analyst, and Chartered Professional Accountant designations.

  • Education: B.Com., University of Toronto
  • Joined the company: 2002
  • Began career: 1998
Rajiv Bakshi, CBV, CFA, CPA, CA

Brian Albert, CFA

Managing Director, Private Equity & Credit

Brian is responsible for sourcing, evaluating, negotiating, and monitoring junior credit and private equity investments. Prior to joining Hancock Capital Management—now operating as Manulife Investment Management—in 2011, he was with Bain as a member of the private equity group, where he worked with clients to evaluate investment opportunities and drive strategic and operational changes at portfolio companies. Prior to that, he was a senior analyst in the transaction advisory services practice at Ernst & Young. Brian holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

  • Education: B.A., Economics, Bucknell University; M.B.A., The University of Chicago Booth School of Business
  • Joined the company: 2011
  • Began career: 2003
Brian Albert, CFA

Related viewpoints

October 2, 2023

An LP’s guide to a reckoning in private equity

Scott Garfield

Scott Garfield,  Senior Managing Director, Head of North America Private Equity Manulife Investment Management

A reckoning is coming amid a market sea change. Some private equity firms will adapt and flourish—others won’t. Two trends may help alert LPs discern the difference.
Read more

October 7, 2022

Private equity co-investing demands micro rigor and macro perspective

Scott Garfield

Scott Garfield,  Senior Managing Director, Head of North America Private Equity Manulife Investment Management

While the macro matters, see why what we look for in co-investments—starting with an excellent sponsor-company fit—doesn’t change, even in moments of extreme uncertainty.
Read more
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Contact us

John (Jay) D. Jarrett Jr.

Managing Director, Business Development and Investor Relations, Private Equity and Credit

617-572-4594 | jdjarrett@jhancock.com

Leigha Schuessler

Managing Director, Business Development and Investor Relations, Private Equity and Credit

857-205-9422 | lhaynes@jhancock.com

Elizabeth Mingle

Managing Director, Business Development and Investor Relations, Private Equity and Credit

617-459-2937 | emingle@jhancock.com

Sean C. Gannon

Managing Director, Business Development, Private Equity and Credit

310-801-3433 | sgannon@manulife.com

Richard Shusman, CFA, CAIA

Managing Director, Business Development, Private Equity and Credit

617-816-2491 | rshusman@manulife.com

Andrew Blackman

Managing Director, Business Development, Private Equity & Credit

207-090-1448 | Andrew_Blackman@manulifeam.com

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