Paola has 16 years of professional experience in private equity fund investments, management consulting, and investment marketing/distribution experience gained in Europe and the Middle East. Paola joined BerchWood from BNP Paribas where she was recently focusing on originating and distributing a variety of private equity fund offerings to European Institutional Investors. Previously, Paola was a co-founding member of Fortis Investments’ Private Equity Fund of Fund business, where she played a key role in establishing an asset management platform focused primarily on European buyouts. She led numerous fund investments in Europe, and supervised a private equity portfolio encompassing approximately 30 general partners.

David Berchenbriter, founder of BerchWood, said: “We are delighted to welcome Paola to our team. Paola is an experienced private equity professional with a breadth of global experience and strong relationships, significantly augmenting the firm’s distribution and origination efforts. The addition of Paola also cements the leadership of our London office and further enhances the firm’s presence in the EMEA region.”

“The London office is an integral part of BerchWood’s global strategy. it is well positioned to capture growth in both the sourcing of talented private equity managers and fund distribution across the EMEA region”, said Paola, “Despite difficult market conditions in recent years, Berchwood has succeeded in raising substantial amounts of capital for its clients from Institutional Investors globally. I am enthusiastic about my new responsibility and look forward to building on the firm’s accomplishments and market leadership.”

Prior to her time at BNP and Fortis, Paola worked on the corporate buy-side for ABN AMRO in strategic planning and business development for its global equities and alternatives business and was a senior consultant with Booz Allen Hamilton’s Middle East practice.

Paola holds a Bachelor of Science degree in statistics and economics from University College London, and a Masters of Science in operational research from the London School of Economics. She has an MBA from INSEAD and is fluent in French, Arabic and English.

About BerchWood Partners

BerchWood Partners has been raising funds from institutional investors across the globe for clients, based in the US, Europe, the MENA Region and Asia since 2000. Their strategies have ranged from venture, growth capital, and lower and middle market buyout to energy and secondaries. They have offices in New York and London.

For more information on BerchWood Partners visit its website: www.berchwoodpartners.com.

In the October 2011 issue of Private Equity International, Shane Litts of Rockland Capital was quoted on raising a first-time fund, for which BerchWood Partners acted as global placement agent:

First-time funds to watch
A look at some of the groups limited partners have been buzzing about

In January, Texas-based energy investor Rockland Capital closed its debut institutional fund on $333 million, after being in market for more than two years. The firm generally targets power plants that it believes can be operated more efficiently.

“We understood that there was a fair amount of risk in raising a first-time fund, and that many first-time funds don’t ever get raised,” says Rockland partner Shane Litts. “There are a lot of LPs that just won’t consider you because you’re a first-time fund.”

Prior to Rockland’s first institutional fund, the firm operated a “pledge fund”, investing on a deal-by-deal basis. All six investors that participated in the firm’s pledge fund committed to Rockland’s debut institutional vehicle, which altogether had roughly 30 limited partners.

Rockland’s first investment from its debut fund was for an interest in California’s La Paloma Generating Plant.

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David received his BBA in economics from the University of Iowa and has his Series 7, 24, 27, 63 and 79 licenses.

Bill received a BA in journalism and political science from the University of Minnesota and a JD from William Mitchell College of Law. He is admitted to practice law in New York and Minnesota and has obtained his Series 7, 24, 63 and 79 licenses.