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Ex-KKR, HIG Capital and TA Associates dealmakers form Altaline Capital; FTV Capital bets on legal tech

Good morning dealmakers, it’s Obey Martin Manayiti with the US edition of the Wire from the New York newsroom.

First, we have an exclusive that a trio of former dealmakers from KKR, HIG Capital and TA Associates are announcing the formation of Altaline Capital Management, a Los Angeles based PE shop focusing on the lower midmarket. We have details below on why the three formed Altaline, the firm’s investment strategy and opportunities arising from the sectors that the firm chose to invest in.

Next, we turn to the growing PE investments in legal technology. For several years, the legal sector has been undergoing technological transformation to update manual processes and deals that leverage the trend keep on coming. In June, San Francisco-based FTV Capital announced it co-led with Lightyear Capital an investment in ProfitSolv. Adam Hallquist, a principal at FTV Capital, shared with PE Hub some of the opportunities that his firm is picking within the sector.

Finally, law firm Norton Rose Fulbright recently released its Global M&A trends and risks report 2025, that touches on a wide range of themes. I caught up with Adam Arnett, the co-head of private equity at Norton Rose, to learn his forecast for the second half of the year.

New players 

A new private equity shop, Altaline Capital Management, has launched today, and it focuses on technology, business services and financial services in the lower mid-market, PE Hub can exclusively reveal.

Based in Los Angeles, the firm was founded by Ian Balmaseda, who was formerly at HIG Capital, where he was on its LBO Funds strategy; Brian Maher, who was with KKR in its flagship Americas Private Equity strategy; and Rafael Telahun, formerly with TA Associates.

Premium Wire subscribers learn more about the firm’s investing strategy.

Altaline will announce its first deal tomorrow.

Legal technology

For several years, the legal sector has been undergoing technological transformation to update manual processes and deals that leverage the trend keep on coming. In June, San Francisco-based FTV Capital announced it co-led with Lightyear Capital an investment in ProfitSolv, a Knoxville, Tennessee-based provider of practice management software and payments for legal, accounting and professional services firms.

Upgrade to the premium version of the Wire to learn more about what Adam Hallquist, principal, FTV Capital, told PE Hub.

Read here for more PE Hub’s coverage of the legal tech. 

More transparency in H2?

I caught up with AdamArnett the co-head of PE at Norton Rose Fullbright after the firm released its Global M&A trends and risks report 2025, which included an outlook from industry leaders following the tariffs.

Upgrade to the premium version of the Wire to read some excerpts.

That’s it from me today. Craig McGlashan will bring you the Europe edition tomorrow, while Rafael Canton will write Wednesday’s US Wire.

Cheers,

Obey

Read the full Wire commentary on PE Hub ...

Also of note (may require subscriptions)

Buyouts' annual list of the biggest 100 private equity firms in the US and Canada, as judged by fundraising over the past five years, shows a slight decline for the 100, from $2.01 trillion last year to $1.98 trillion this year – a first since Buyouts started compiling the list in 2021. Some of the articles included in the package:

• Tech’s star continues to shine on the 100 list
• TPG’s launch of 10th flagship is ‘big event’ for the firm
• Some limited partners are heading for the exits and going abroad

Historically, women’s health has been underinvested, but the normalization of women’s health and reproductive care has recently attracted private equity interest to the sector. To learn more, PE Hub caught up with Pamela Applefeld, managing director at InTandem Capital Partners; Randi Mason, partner and co-chair of corporate practice at Morrison Cohen; and Ally Vey, origination director at Phoenix Equity Partners.

According to the 2025 edition of Private Equity International’s Global Investor 150, the biggest investors in the asset class had $2.65 trillion allocated to private equity last year, up 4.3 percent on a year prior. This demonstrates that while the market is undoubtedly facing some ongoing troubles, investors remain confident in its long-term potential.

Transport volumes were particularly affected by the pandemic and despite some societal changes have since largely recovered. Fast forward to 2025, and government net-zero targets, combined with innovative digitalisation, are poised to radically transform the sector. Read Infrastructure Investor's latest Transport Special Report to see how.

In a Sustainability and Impact Investing Report, Private Debt Investor looks at how ESG is becoming a more subtle component of everyday portfolio management and how interest in backing artificial intelligence raises concerns about its environmental impact.

Carlyle has identified approximately $13 billion in revenue linked to sustainability-related requests from customers of its portfolio companies in 2024, marking a 20 percent increase on the previous year, according to the investment firm’s latest sustainability report. (New Private Markets)

Arizona State Retirement System previewed its private equity implementation plan for the next several years as the pension fund looks to increase its private equity exposure while shedding manager relationships and focusing its strategy on the lower mid-market and mid-market. (Buyouts)

Deals

They said it

“We are looking for defensive growth businesses with high-quality models. These businesses are not susceptible to government regulations and change. We like businesses that are not cyclical or subject to recession and these businesses are not subject to the Fed or consumer decision risk.”

— Rafael Telahun, a managing director at Altaline Capital Management, explained following the launch of the firm.

Today's letter was prepared by Obey Martin Manayiti

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