【英语中国】私募股权基金在中国的机遇和挑战

That private equity funds denominated in yuan will one day dominate China's market is no longer a question. What foreign firms are wrestling with now, is how they'll adapt to such a world.

Step by step China is softening its rules on private equity. Eventually these changes will likely see more foreign firms raising funds denominated in yuan. For them, this will be a chance to compete with domestic players who are raising and investing money at an increasing lick. It should also leave them with fewer restrictions on where they can invest their funds.

They're also going to find that the rule book in China is different. Unlike investors in more developed markets, who align themselves with a private equity fund typically over a five-year or more time horizon, Chinese limited partners like to see returns in a much shorter time frame of around three years.

Chinese investors also tend to demand more involvement in investment decisions than private equity firms are used to. Some put this down to a relative lack of experience and the absence of a professional base to fund private equity in China.

Taking on less patient Chinese limited partners will leave private equity firms with a dilemma over resource allocation. Keeping domestic investors happy, and making investments more quickly to suit their needs, will be time-consuming. The interests of foreign limited partners who've put money into foreign-currency-denominated funds, could get marginalized.

Still, the sidelining of foreign limited-partner interests may be a price private equity firms are willing to pay. After all, the pools of capital available in China may prove a more constant, if less congenial, source of the money that provides private equity's lifeblood.

人民币私募股权基金有朝一日将成为中国市场的霸主，这不再是个问题。现在令外国公司绞尽脑汁的是，当这样一个世界到来时，它们该如何适应。

中国正逐步放宽对私募股权的规定。最终，这些变化可能会造成更多外国公司筹资人民币资金。对这些公司来说，这将是一个与不断加快筹资和投资步伐的中国本土公司竞争的机会，它们还会看到对外国私募股权基金投资领域的限制放宽。

外国公司还会发现，中国的规则有所不同。在更加发达的市场，投资者与私募股权基金的合作通常为五年甚至更长时间；与此不同的是，中国有限责任合伙人希望在更短的时间内──三年左右──就看到回报。

中国投资者还往往要求比私募股权公司所习惯的程度更多地参与投资决策。一些人将此归因于中国相对缺乏经验和缺乏为私募股权提供资金的专业基础。

与不太耐心的中国有限责任合伙人合作会令私募股权公司陷入资源配置的两难处境。让国内投资者满意，更快地进行投资满足国内投资者的需求，这需要花费大量时间。投资于外汇基金的外国有限责任合伙人的利益可能会被忽视。

尽管如此，忽视外国有限责任合伙人的利益可能是私募股权公司宁愿付出的代价。毕竟，事实可能会证明，在中国可以获得的资金可能是更持续不断（或许没有那么合意）的资金来源，可以给私募股权提供生命力。