The Private Equity Growth and Capital Council, of which Ken Mehlman is the Chairman, recently released a survey which shows that in the last year private equity firms invested some $443 billion in to approximately 2,300 companies in the United States.  Interestingly enough, this is a 27 percent increase from what private equity companies invested in the previous year.

Essentially, as Vice President of research at the PEGCC Bronwyn Bailey explains, private equity firms provide a boost to the economy through their investments, helping to build new factories, create jobs, and generally spur economic growth.  Providing investments that allow regional companies to expand also helps consumers have access to additional products, as well as potentially adding tax revenue to the areas that these companies expand into.

These company investments are often years in the making.  As a Mainstreet.com piece about the survey explains, it is not uncommon for private equity firms to buy a company to invest in only to sell it nearly a decade in the future.  Many of these companies are also older companies, as private equity investment “differs from venture capital firms” in that they do not tend to invest in start ups or flash in the pan social media companies.

Ken Mehlman was elected the new chairman of the Private Equity Growth Capital Council on December 19, 2013.  Mehlman also serves as a Member at Kohlberg Kravis and Roberts and is a founding member of the PEGCC.

Read the full piece at http://www.pegcc.org/newsroom/in-the-news/main-street-private-equity-investment-boosts-the-economy-heres-how-your-retirements-at-play/