Blackstone
If you’re looking to sell your private equity fund stakes, you’ve probably reached out to Vern (short for Verdun) Perry. Perry heads Blackstone Strategic Partners, one of the largest buyers of buyout funds that have yet to mature.
When Perry started out, secondaries investing was a fringe strategy. Last year, it grew to a record $160 billion in volume as large investors, like Harvard University, look to sell investments to free up cash.
He previously told Business Insider that he believes the market will set a new record this year of $220 billion.
Business Insider spoke with Perry about his career, his advice for young professionals, and his top efficiency tips. The following conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
Walk me through your career. How did you end up leading this business for Blackstone?
I’ve been a secondaries investor going on 25 years, since Strategic Partners was founded. After graduating from Morehouse College in 1994, I worked as an investment banker at Morgan Stanley and in acquisitions for a holding company. I then made my way to Harvard Business School and interned at investment bank Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette during the summer of 1999.
’99 was busy. I worked around the clock, from 8:30 a.m. to well past 3:00 a.m., but I loved the place, people, and work. At the end of the summer, I received an offer and accepted it on the spot.
The critical juncture of my career came a couple of months after joining DLJ full-time. I was introduced to Stephen Can, founding partner of Strategic Partners. I didn’t know what secondaries were, but once Stephen explained the strategy to me, it changed my life.
What has happened since joining Blackstone?
When we joined Blackstone in 2013, we had 27 professionals and $9 billion in AUM. Now, we have 141 professionals and $87 billion in AUM. During that time, we’ve returned roughly $33 billion in distributions to our investors
Since the team was founded, we’ve done more than 2,200 secondaries deals, which we believe is the most of any secondary buyer. That’s a deal closed every three business days on average, for 25 years.
I’ve heard market uncertainty can slow secondary activities, so I was struck by your prediction of a record year.
Whoever said that is correct, but the current dislocation started in 2022, with high inflation and interest rates, which resulted in a significant decline in exits and distributions.
That’s why you saw record volume in 2024. Sellers wanted to sell in 2022 and 2023, but they could not agree on pricing and terms with buyers. By 2024, their pricing expectations came in line with reality. Some could argue that sellers were fatigued after over 2 years of relatively low distributions.
Why won’t there be a two-year dislocation due to Trump’s tariff announcements?
Many investors have no more time to wait. If tariffs had followed four years of normal capital markets, exits, and investment activity, then yes, it would likely have started a new 12-24 month period of slower secondary sales.
It doesn’t matter that tariffs are causing some uncertainty; many investors have to find liquidity. So, they sell some of their older fund names to free up capital to invest in new funds.
What career advice do you have for people looking to break into finance?
I tell young people not to focus on what’s hot today. Instead, think about what might be hot tomorrow and try to get in early.
When I got into secondaries, some people turned their noses up at it. In 2021, Harvard Business School published a case study on Blackstone Strategic Partners with me as the protagonist. I can’t tell you how many students now want to do secondaries.
Any other tips for getting ahead?
Focus on people first and numbers second. If you mistreat someone and you run into them 25 years later, they will only remember how you mistreated them, not the good things you did.
Treat people fairly and with respect and your reputation will follow you. For example, Tony James helped recruit me to DLJ and helped to form Strategic Partners in 2000. When Strategic Partners was looking for a new home, Tony James was Blackstone’s president and COO.
You seem like a very busy man. How do you get it all done?
Every week, we have a team meeting over lunch to talk about resource allocation, and we talk about every single deal. We assess which deals are not high quality or high probability. The next step is a quick but respectful no, which allows us to lean in and double our efforts on the high-quality deals.
Delegation is so critical to efficiency. We are all ambitious and want to succeed, but we cannot and do not have to do it alone. There are lots of capable people, and it can be their opportunity to step up, learn, and grow. Sometimes efficiency is about saying no for yourself and yes for someone else.
What’s something you do to keep yourself grounded?
I try to make time every day to connect with a family member or close friend. Life and work can be hectic, so it is all the more important to be intentional about nurturing relationships and making time for the people I care about.
The other reason I do this is to stay grounded. The family and friends I connect with have known me since my humble beginnings. It is important to have people around you who will tell you the truth, even when it is painful to hear.
What advice do you have for the industry around creating more pathways for people who weren’t exposed to finance early in life?
My advice for the finance industry is to increase the number of schools from which it recruits. For example, in 2015, Blackstone recruited from 9 colleges and universities. Today, that number is over 100 different schools.
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