American private equity firm Blackstone Group LP on Tuesday reportedly appointed on of its senior advisers to head its Australia business. Blackstone's latest move was said to be a sign that the firm plans to ramp up its investing efforts inside the country.
Reuters, citing Blackstone spokeswoman Charlotte Bilney, said that James Carnegie will be a senior managing director at Blackstone and will assume a direct deal-making role.
Carnegie is an Australian private equity veteran and a former partner at domestic firm Archer Capital Management LP. He had been a Blackstone senior adviser in Australia since 2012, the report said.
The Australian in a separate report said that Blackstone's former Australia and New Zealand chairman Paul Costello resigned last year after about two years at the firm. Costello was charged with supporting Blackstone's fund-raising efforts in the country.
Blackstone has yet to do an Australian deal. Its only buyout in the Antipodes has been the November 2011 purchase of New Zealand's Antares Restaurant Group Ltd., which owns the Burger King franchise in the country. Blackstone managed $248 billion in assets as of September 30, 2013, the report said.
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