Winter 2014 - 2015 Issue

CFI.co | Capital Finance International 35

CFI.co Meets the Mercury Capital Advisors Group:

The Four Who Make It Happen>

ercury Capital Advisors Group is collectively run by its four person management committee. Michael G. Ricciardi, managing partner and co-founder is head of the firm. Over the

course of his 36-year career, he was managing director and head of the Private Equity Funds Group at Merrill Lynch. Mr. Ricciardi was formerly head of Global Fixed Income Distribution at PaineWebber and a member of the Operating Committee of the firm. Prior to this, Mr. Ricciardi was a managing director of Citicorp Securities and head of distribution for all fixed income and equity products worldwide. He was also head of Domestic Fixed Income, sat on the Board of Directors of Citicorp Securities, and was a member of its Executive Committee.

In 1982, Mr. Ricciardi received a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Harvard Business School where he was elected class marshal to lead commencement exercises. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Georgetown University in 1978 where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree, magna cum laude, in Economics and received the Robert A. Duffey Prize as the University’s Outstanding Scholar Athlete.

Alan A. Pardee is also a managing partner, co-founder, and a member of Mercury Capital’s Executive Committee. He was previously a managing director and chief operating officer of the Merrill Lynch Private Equity Funds Group, in which he served for nearly twelve years. For two years, he concurrently served as global head of the Merrill Lynch Real Estate Private Capital Group within the Global Commercial Real Estate Division.

Mr. Pardee joined Merrill Lynch in 1995 in the Global Communications Group, originating and executing M&A and corporate finance mandates in investment banking before joining the Private Equity Funds Group in 1998. He earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Princeton University with a major in the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs and an MBA and a certificate in Public Management from the Stanford University Graduate School of Business.

Enrique Cuan is a managing partner and co-founder as well, and is also a member of Mercury Capital’s Executive Committee. He was previously a managing director and head of International Distribution for the Merrill Lynch Private Equity Funds Group. Mr. Cuan is responsible for advising institutional investors

in Europe and Asia (ex-Japan and Korea) on their alternative investments in private equity, real estate, infrastructure, hedge funds, venture capital, mezzanine, and distressed funds.

Mr. Cuan’s investors include the largest sovereign wealth funds, central banks, insurance companies, pension funds, funds of funds, and institutional family offices in these regions. Mr. Cuan graduated cum laude from Tufts University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and French Literature.

Michael Manfredonia is chief operating officer and chief financial officer of Mercury Capital Advisors. Prior to joining Mercury, he was employed by Goldman Sachs and Co. for twenty four years and was most recently chief financial officer of their Human Capital Management Division which employed more than 700 people and had an annual budget in excess of $1 billion.

Mr. Manfredonia graduated cum laude from Rutgers University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and German Studies and was awarded an MBA in Professional Accounting from the Rutgers Graduate School of Management. He is a Certified Public Accountant in the State of New York.

Mercury has prosecuted several large global fundraisings, among them:

• Vornado Capital Partners - $800 million for their fully integrated real estate investment trust, and one of the largest owners and managers of commercial real estate in the United States with a portfolio of over 100 million square feet, primarily located in the New York and Washington, DC areas.• Providence Debt Fund III - $1.75 billion for Benefit Street Partners, the middle market credit platform of Providence Equity Partners. The Fund was oversubscribed by nearly $1bn.• Madison International Real Estate Liquidity Fund V - $825 million for their fifth fund focused on buying “direct secondary” ownership interests in Class A quality commercial real estate assets from existing investors seeking liquidity.• SSG Capital Partners III - $915 million for their third fund focused on special situations and distressed investments in the Asia-Pacific region.• Forest City Enterprises, Inc. - $2.05 billion, Mercury co-advised with Goldman Sachs, Forest City Enterprises on their joint venture agreement with Queensland Investment Corporation to recapitalise and invest in a portfolio of eight regional retail malls.• Gaw Real Estate Fund IV - $1.025 billion for their fourth fund targeting investments in real estate across the Asia-Pacific region.• Alpha Asia Macro Trends Fund II - $1.65 billion focused on real estate strategies that leverage prominent macro trends in Asia. i

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From left: Alan A. Pardee, Managing Partner and Co-Founder; Michael Manfredonia, Partner, COO and CFO; Michael G. Ricciardi,

Managing Partner, Co-founder, and Head of Firm; Enrique Cuan, Managing Partner and Co-Founder.

30 CFI.co | Capital Finance International

Mercury Capital Advisors:

Customisation and Global Presence

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ercury Capital Advisors seeks to engage with the best and most successful fund managers in their respective areas of expertise, while maintaining strong relationships

with many of the largest, most established institutional investors in the world. The firm supports this diverse client base by combining its global presence and experience with a bespoke service orientation consistent with the firm’s boutique ethos.

Coalescing deal management and advisory practices with a coordinated sales and marketing process, professionals at Mercury work collaboratively to develop and maximise fundraising programmes geared towards helping clients not only grow their assets, but also increase brand recognition. In 2015, Mercury will complement its growth trajectory with the establishment of an electronic portal to initiate access to high-net worth investors through the registered investment advisor (RIA) community.

FUNDRAISINGAs a full-service placement agent, Mercury focuses on providing each client with a customised and highly coordinated approach to the fundraising process. This begins with the development and implementation of a targeted marketing strategy tailored to the unique needs of each fund manager.

The firm also assists in the preparation of all marketing materials and data room items, as well as in the execution of the full marketing/roadshow process from fund launch to final closing. Core competencies range from emerging markets, metals and mining, energy, special situations, and power to intellectual property, agriculture, health care, consumer, and technology.

SECONDARIES, CO-INVESTMENTS, AND DIRECT EQUITY INVESTMENTSMercury has extensive experience raising capital for secondaries, co-investments, and direct equity investments. These transactions may be executed in the context of an ongoing fundraising or as a distinct process. The firm has successfully raised capital for a number of these opportunities since inception, providing clients with capital-raising services specific to a variety of different asset classes, in addition to offering strategic advice on deal dynamics, negotiations, and communications.

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Headquartered in New York, and with offices in London, Tokyo, Singapore, Dubai, San Francisco, Boston, and Washington DC, Mercury Capital Advisors competes via a differentiated platform with product offerings across private equity, hedge funds, real estate, credit, distressed, venture capital, and infrastructure, as well as secondaries, co-investments and direct equity transactions. The company has a preferred distribution partner in Latin America with branches in Chile, Peru, Brazil, and Columbia.

“With approximately 300 years of collective distribution

and origination experience, its professionals have

senior level backgrounds in alternative investing, mergers and acquisitions, investment

banking, high yield, legal, and consulting disciplines.”

Winter 2014 - 2015 Issue

CFI.co | Capital Finance International 31

ADVISORYIn addition to fundraising, Mercury also offers standalone advisory services to its general partner clients. These services include a comprehensive review of a client’s portfolio and strategy, guidance on the developments of key marketing and investor due diligence materials, in-depth fund performance analysis, advice on market conventions – including fund structure, terms and other investor conditions – and coaching with respect to presentation style.

GIVINGGiving back and forging relationships with the community are key components of Mercury’s culture. The firm supports a number of charitable organizations, three of which were founded by Mercury employees or their spouses.

ABOUT MERCURY CAPITALMercury Capital Advisors is among the world’s elite institutional capital-raising and investment advisory enterprises. With approximately 300 years of collective distribution and origination experience, its professionals have senior level backgrounds in alternative investing, mergers and acquisitions, investment banking, high yield, legal, and consulting disciplines.

Since 2003, professionals at Mercury have completed more than a hundred mandates ranging from $200 million to over $10 billion, and have raised in excess of $130 billion in commitments. The firm covers more than 2,000 limited partners globally including sovereign wealth funds, public and corporate pension funds, insurance companies, endowments, family offices, foundations, funds of funds, and consultants. i

“In 2015, Mercury will complement

its growth trajectory with the establishment of an

electronic portal to initiate access to high-net worth investors through

the registered investment advisor (RIA) community.”

New York: Freedom Tower