| CalPERS reportedly selling $6B in PE fund stakes; KKR closes $4B healthcare fund; GreyLion shares strategy; and Eli Manning joins BVP Good morning, Hubsters. MK Flynn here with today’s Wire, including news about CalPERS, KKR, GreyLion and two-time Super Bowl champ Eli Manning, plus insights from private equity leaders, including Beatrice Mitchell.
Secondaries. California Public Employees’ Retirement System, a bellwether LP that often sets the standard for private equity investing, is embarking on what could be an historic sale of private equity fund stakes. CalPERS engaged Jefferies to sell up to $6 billion in private equity fund stakes, three sources told Buyouts.
Lower middle market. GreyLion Capital shared the firm’s strategy with PE Hub while unveiling two new investments: Webconnex LLC, a developer of ticketing and event management software; and Norwood Sawmills, a provider of portable consumer-sized sawmills. While in different sectors, both targets are emblematic of the New York-based PE firm’s strategy. GreyLion, which focuses on the lower mid-market, was spun out from Perella Weinberg Partners back in 2020.
Fundraising. KKR announced this morning the final closing of KKR Health Care Strategic Growth Fund II, a $4 billion fund dedicated to health care growth equity investment opportunities primarily in North America and Europe. “At nearly three times the size of its predecessor, HCSG II not only speaks to the attractive investment opportunities that we are seeing but also demonstrates the strength of our health care investment team, our Health Care Strategic Growth strategy, and our strong investment performance to date,” said partner Alisa Amarosa Wood.
Seller’s market. “Business owners understand that, given the huge buyer appetite, this is a seller’s market,” Beatrice Mitchell, co-founder and managing director of Sperry, Mitchell & Co. told PE Hub in our Outlook 2022 series of Q&As.
Are you ready for some football? Two-time Super Bowl champion Eli Manning has joined Brand Velocity Partners (BVP), a private equity firm focused on acquiring and growing consumer businesses. Manning will be involved in all aspects of the firm, including supporting its growth, sourcing new investment opportunities and enhancing the value of its portfolio companies. Manning was first introduced to BVP as an investor in 2020 and became a “brand ambassador” for BVP-owned BBQGuys in March 2021. Manning’s father Archie also invests in BBQGuys.
Nominations. We’re looking for your recommendations for rock star women in private equity, mostly on the deal side (which has been historically male-dominated). Deadline to get in your recs is January 17, for publication in March. Our annual Women in Private Equity project comprises 10 mini-profiles of highly regarded women in the industry and a feature story about some burning topic around the status of women in the industry. Check out our past coverage of Women in PE here. Reach Buyouts editor Chris Witkowsky with questions and recommendations at [email protected].
Deal of the Year: Get your nominations in now for your best exits (either full or majority) that closed in 2021. Awards are given in seven categories: overall deal of the year, large-cap, middle-market, small-cap, international, turnaround and secondaries. Deadline is Friday, Feb. 11. Send to Chris Witkowsky, private equity editor, at [email protected]. Go here for all the rules and regs!
Finally, if you missed our Outlook 2022 Q&As last week, see our interviews with The Riverside Company vice chairman Pam Hendrickson; Grain Management founder David Grain; Monroe Capital president Zia Uddin; and FTV Capital managing partner Brad Bernstein. [https://www.pehub.com/ftv-capitals-brad-bernstein-eyes-companies-that-enhance-e-commerce-and-fix-supply-chain-problems/]
See you tomorrow, MK
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Also of note (may require subscriptions) A major limited partner is taking a step back. Chuck Flynn, chairman of Bregal Private Equity Partners, will retire after a year’s transition out, effective Jan. 1, 2023. (Buyouts)
Ares Management, the 19th largest private equity firm according to the PEI 300, has completed a tie-up with Spring Bridge Partners amid a wider push into secondaries. (Secondaries Investor)
"Eleven listed private equity firms collectively gained nearly $240bn in market value in 2021. Against that backdrop, a growing number of privately held buyout groups are rushing to join them on the public markets." (Financial Times)
"Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. has reached a deal to buy Zynga Inc. in a $12.7 billion deal that would unite two videogame companies with a presence across gaming platforms." (Wall Street Journal)
Hugh MacArthur, "head of the global private-equity practice at consulting firm Bain & Co., said he sees optimism over private markets’ returns, despite high prices for assets." (WSJ Pro)
"A consumer-technology company whose brands include online beauty products seller Il Makiage and that is backed by private-equity firm L Catterton gained several new investors through a $130 million deal valuing the business at $1.5 billion." (WSJ Pro)
PE Deals 
They said it “Ironically, the best relative values in the current M&A market remain those slow, steady, asset-heavy manufacturing companies that were the original targets of the early institutional PE industry.” — Beatrice Mitchell, co-founder and managing director, Sperry, Mitchell & Co.
Today's letter was prepared by MK Flynn Subscribe now to get full, unlimited access to all PE Hub content, including every PE Hub Wire article. Please visit Buyouts for the latest insight into LP activity and Venture Capital Journal for comprehensive coverage and analysis of what’s happening in VC. 
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