#02 Oliver Schebela, CFA – Private Equity Fund Investing

The Wall Street Lab

Oliver Schebela, CFA is the Head of Private Equity Solutions of Bethmann Bank, a traditional German private bank, wholly owned by ABN AMRO. Prior to this, he spent 7 years at FERI Trust, where he started as a Private Equity Manager and worked his way up to Head of Private Equity. In his earlier days (he is still very young), he worked at Credit Suisse and at Commerzbank.

For the full show notes and to subscribe go to: http://www.thewallstreetlab.com/episode-02-oliver-schebela-cfa-private-equity-fund-investing/

This is a special episode for us. Not necessarily for the great conversation we had with Oliver, but for what it means to this journey Luke and I have embarked on. Back in the day when starting The Wall Street Lab was just an idea, we used to grab coffee and talk about who could potentially be guests on the podcast. Oliver was really the first person we thought about! So having the opportunity to actually interview him serves as validation that our idea was really worth pursuing.

As you will notice from the interview, Oliver is a very down to earth, extremely competent and experienced private equity fund manager. During our conversation, we touch on topics such as the difference between direct and fund of fund private equity investing, the pros and cons of working for large companies versus smaller boutiques, his experience studying for the CFA exams, things he looks at when interviewing candidates to work for him, to name a few.

We really hope you enjoy this conversation with Oliver. If you do, make sure rate us on iTunes and follow us on the various social media platforms.

Please see the show notes below:

• The difference between private and public equity [03:30]
• The difference between direct and indirect private equity investments [04:50]
• How Oliver started in finance [07:00]
• The importance of combining theory and practice when starting your career in finance [08:00]
• The early days of private equity in Germany [10:00]
• The pros and cons of working for a large company when compared to boutiques [12:30]
• Different ways to get into private equity [14:30]
• How Oliver selects private equity fund managers [16:30]
• How he is able to read through fund marketing pitches and extract important information from private equity managers [20:00]
• The differences between investing for institutional clients versus investing for high net worth individuals [22:00]
• Oliver’s view on the illiquidity premium received by private equity funds [27:00]
• Oliver’s opinion on the best way to get a head start in private equity [31:15]
• What Oliver looks at when interviewing people to work for him [35:30]
• Oliver’s experience studying for the CFA exams and receiving his charter [40:10]
• His opinion on the importance of having a CFA charter in asset management [42:05]
• Oliver’s suggestion on how to prepare for the CFA exams [44:00]
• What daily activity would he outsource, if he had the chance to [46:50]
• Who are Oliver’s role models [48:10]
• Oliver’s view on the importance of having a mentor [49:30]
• Oliver’s favorite book [50:55]

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