姚明能否成爲私募股權業的灌籃高手?
Former NBA player Yao Ming may have been a star on the basketball court, but he moves onto an unfamiliar arena - the private equity arena - following reports he has bought and rebranded Chongqing Yufu Assets Management Group.
前美國職業籃球聯賽(NBA)球員姚明在籃球場上或許是個明星，但現在他開始涉足私募股權這個他並不熟悉的領域了。有報道稱，姚明接手了一家基金管理公司，並將公司更名爲重慶渝富弘遠股權投資基金管理公司(Chongqing Yufu Assets Management Group)。He joins a club of other celebrities that have also moved into the private equity world, including U2 singer Bono, who co-founded media, entertainment and technology investment firm Elevation Partners, and former NFL quarterback Steve Young, now a managing partner and co-founder of Huntsman Gay Global Capital.
其他明星也有移師私募股權業的，如U2樂隊主唱波諾(Bono)聯合創立了專注於媒體、娛樂和科技投資的私募股權基金Elevation Partners，美國國家橄欖球聯盟(NFL)前四分衛楊(Steve Young)聯合創立了私募股權基金Huntsman Gay Global Capital，現爲該基金執行合夥人。姚明現在也加入了這些明星的隊伍。Although athletes and celebrities may not always have financial background, they do bring star power, especially when it comes to fundraising.
雖然運動員和明星可能並不總是擁有金融背景，但他們確實會帶來一定的明星效應，特別是在籌款方面。
'One thing famous sports and music figures bring to a private equity firm is brand awareness, which certainly cannot hurt fundraising,' said Bruno Roy, managing partner of McKinsey & Co.'s office in Beijing. 'Everyone will take a meeting with Bono, Steve Young and Yao Ming.'
麥肯錫(McKinsey & Co.)駐北京的執行合夥人羅頤(Bruno Roy)說，知名運動員和音樂人給私募股權公司帶來的一大好處就是品牌知名度，這對籌款來說當然是有百益無一害的，每個人都想找機會與波諾、楊和姚明見面。Indeed, the mere mention of Mr. Yao could also be good for his recently-bought firm's deal sourcing, said Alberto Forchielli, a founding partner of Mandarin Capital Partners. Mr Fortchielli noted, however, that '[Mr. Yao] alone can spot good opportunities, but can still lose money if the deal is poorly executed.'
曼達林基金(Mandarin Capital Partner)創始合夥人福爾基耶利(Alberto Forchielli)說，對他近期買下的這家機構來說，僅僅是提到姚明這個名字就有可能爲招攬業務帶來好處。不過他也指出，單憑姚明一人是可以發現好機遇，但如果項目執行得不好，可能仍會虧錢。And while Mr. Yao may have a strong track record on the court, all that's going to matter is his track record in the private equity world.
雖然姚明在球場上可能有着輝煌的過往，但現在最重要的是他在私募股權界的業績記錄。'If he can grasp deal structuring concepts quickly and can intelligently participate in discussions, he could be a tremendous asset,' said one Beijing-based venture capital investor, noting that other celebrities have a history of mixed results when it comes to investing.
一位駐北京的風投人士說，如果姚明能很快領會交易架構的概念並且能理智地參與相關討論，他可能會成爲私募基金的一筆寶貴財富。這位投資人指出，其他明星在投資方面的表現有好有壞。On top of this, returns from sport-related deals are 'generally lousy,' said Mr. Forchielli, highlighting that 'private equity always stays away from them.' He added that in European soccer, investors have lost money 'big time,' pointing to this month's sale of Manchester United, which only raised $300 million from an expected $500 million.
福爾基耶利說，與運動有關的交易回報一般都很糟糕。他強調說，私募股權總是離這些交易遠遠的。他還說，投資者在歐洲足球那裏虧了大錢。本月，英國足球俱樂部曼徹斯特聯隊(Manchester United)上市僅籌到了3億美元，而他們本來期望能籌到5億美元。Although the jury is still out on Mr. Yao's move into the private equity world, 'his experience in dealing with locker room dynamics while at the Houston Rockets will serve him well when dealing with fractious corporate boards,' said Tom Tsao, founder of Shanghai-based Gobi Partners.
雖然姚明進軍私募股權業結果如何現在還不得而知，但位於上海的風投企業戈壁合夥人有限公司(Gobi Partners)創始人曹嘉泰說，姚明在休斯頓火箭隊(Houston Rockets)衣帽間裏與人打交道的經驗應該會讓他有能力與那些難對付的公司董事會打交道。'He's got personal experience in building a global brand [his own] that many companies will find useful. And if he can dunk over Shaq, I'm sure he can handle a stubborn CEO,' said Mr. Tsao.
曹嘉泰說，姚明在打造他個人全球品牌方面有其獨到的經驗，很多公司會發現這一點很有用，如果他能蓋大鯊魚的帽，我相信他也能與固執的CEO們周旋。News of Mr. Yao's move was previously reported by Reuters.
姚明進軍私募股權業的消息此前路透社(Reuters)曾報道過。
