PRINT THIS PAGE Public value: a primer on private equity19/09/2007. Source: Private Equity Council. 
You can hardly open a newspaper today without learning of a major new corporate transaction involving private equity, says the Private Equity Council. As private equity has become more prominent, as private equity funds and the size of the transactions they finance have grown larger and as the names of the companies they acquire have become more familiar, reasonable questions are being asked: What is private equity all about? How does it work? What does it mean for the American economy, for American workers and for American competitiveness? This paper is intended to address these and other relevant questions—and to ensure that any public policy debate about private equity is balanced and rooted in facts, not fears or provocative rhetoric.
Though few know it, private equity is an integral part of the everyday lives of millions of Americans. When you buy coffee in the morning at Dunkin’ Donuts, you’re interacting with private equity; when you see a movie produced by MGM Studios and buy a pizza at Domino’s afterwards, you’re interacting with private equity. When you shop at Toys R Us for the hottest new video game or the latest “must have” doll or when you buy a new outfit at J. Crew, you’re touching private equity.
When you purchase pet food and supplies for your dog or cat at Petco, that’s private equity, too. And when you make online plane and hotel reservations for your vacation, you may be relying on private equity. Many of us work in office buildings owned by private equity companies, and drive cars and fly in airplanes that rely on parts and equipment made by private equity-owned firms. Even the power that lights our homes in some parts of the country is delivered by private equity-owned companies.
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The Private Equity Council, based in Washington, DC, is an advocacy, communications and research organization and resource center established to develop, analyze and distribute information about the private equity industry and its contributions to the national and global economy. The PEC opened its doors in February 2007.
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