Five post-US election considerations for private equity

NextWave Private Equity

Jerry Whelan, EY Private Equity Tax Technical Leader, and Ray Beeman, Co-head of the EY Washington Council, join Winna Brown to discuss the top five critical areas to which PE executives must pay attention:

1. Tax and regulatory
2. Incentives
3. Deal activity
4. Opportunity landscape (domestic and cross-border)
5. Sector big bets

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This podcast was recorded on 20 November, 2020 and assumes there will be a divided government scenario in the US with a Biden Administration and Republican-controlled Senate.

The results of the US election have enormous implications for all industries, and private equity (PE) is no exception. While there is anticipation of a return to a conventional approach to governing, it’s critical for PE to remain agile and anticipate pendulum swings in government policy that will require agility and robust scenario planning.

It’s critical for PE executives to track the following dynamics:

• Whether legislative issues such as stimulus, onshoring supply chains and infrastructure will gain bipartisan momentum
• Whether and how priority initiatives will be funded with proposed tax changes
• Impact of regulatory and enforcement changes on sector and deal flow
• Modeling tax variables, including sunsetting provisions that may increase cash tax
• A gradual shift in tone toward global trade and multilateral agreements and initiatives