Private Equity · Profile from Private Equity Research Companion
Madison Dearborn Partners (1992 – present)
Chicago-based private equity firm, spun out of First Chicago's venture capital arm in 1992. Over three decades MDP became one of the Midwest's largest buyout firms, known for large take-privates (CDW, Nuveen, Univision consortium, Yankee Candle, NFP, MoneyGram) and a sector focus on Basic Industries, Business & Government Software and Services, Financial & Transaction Services, and Health Care. Its latest flagship, Madison Dearborn Capital Partners VIII, closed at its $5.0bn hard cap (2021).
10 deals and moves analysed
Each one gets a full strategy file in the companion: context, the decision, the financing, what happened, and the lesson.
2002
Jefferson Smurfit Group
Take-Private and Merger into Smurfit Kappa
2004
Boise Cascade
Carve-Out of Paper, Wood Products and Timberland from OfficeMax
2004
Cinemark
Majority Recapitalisation of a Founder-Led Exhibitor
2007
CDW
Take-Private
2007
Nuveen Investments
Take-Private of an Asset Manager
2007
Univision
Club-Deal Take-Private
2007
VWR
Secondary Buyout
2007
Yankee Candle
Take-Private
2013
National Financial Partners
Take-Private of an Insurance Brokerage Roll-Up
2023
MoneyGram
Take-Private