2007 Year in Review

GREENWICH, CT--As a firm, we had an exceptional year in 2007 with significant accomplishments in building the portfolio through new investments, driving value through growth and the IPO markets, and developing our global organization. We added twelve (12) new companies to the portfolio in 2007, investing a total capital of $2.1 billion. These investments were representative of our continued focus on identifying the highest quality growth companies across our selected industry sectors and regions. The investments were located in seven different countries, including two investments in Latin America: MercadoLibre (Argentina) and the Brazilian Mercantile and Futures Exchange (Brazil). We ended the year with 45 companies in our portfolio, with 23 public companies and 22 private companies.

A key driver of our performance in 2007 was the ability of our portfolio companies to successfully access the global public markets. Seven (7) companies completed initial public offerings, raising a total of over $5 billion. These companies represented each of GA’s geographic focus areas and included our recent efforts in Latin America, where the BM&F offering was the second largest IPO in Brazilian history.

As a firm, we had an exceptional year in 2007 with significant accomplishments in building the portfolio through new investments, driving value through growth and the IPO markets, and developing our global organization. We added twelve (12) new companies to the portfolio in 2007, investing a total capital of $2.1 billion. These investments were representative of our continued focus on identifying the highest quality growth companies across our selected industry sectors and regions. The investments were located in seven different countries, including two investments in Latin America: MercadoLibre (Argentina) and the Brazilian Mercantile and Futures Exchange (Brazil). We ended the year with 45 companies in our portfolio, with 23 public companies and 22 private companies.

A key driver of our performance in 2007 was the ability of our portfolio companies to successfully access the global public markets. Seven (7) companies completed initial public offerings, raising a total of over $5 billion. These companies represented each of GA’s geographic focus areas and included our recent efforts in Latin America, where the BM&F offering was the second largest IPO in Brazilian history.

Value creation during the year was driven by revenue growth, with the average company growing revenue by 27% during the year, well above the S&P average growth rate for the year of 14%. Revenue growth was driven by demand across markets, geographic expansion and select m&a activity across our portfolio. Strong leadership at our portfolio company management teams was a key factor contributing to successful execution of critical strategic initiatives and continued growth.

In the past year, we continued to strengthen our own organization with a particular emphasis on India and China. We announced the appointment of two new managing directors in these regions: Ranjit Pandit, former chairman of McKinsey & Company India, in Mumbai, and Jeff Leng, former managing director at Warburg Pincus, in Hong Kong. We also strengthened our London office with the hiring of John Bernstein as a new managing director. John was previously a director at Advent International, leading their telecoms and technology investment practice. In addition, several key managing director and principal promotions recognized the significant contributions of GA professionals who represent the next generation of our firm’s leadership. All of this year’s managing director promotions were in our global offices: Raul Rai and Sunish Sharma in Mumbai, Oliver Thum in Düsseldorf and Sean Tong in Hong Kong. Notably, 50% of our investment professionals are now based outside of our Greenwich office providing strong regional leadership for our increasingly global organization. To further strengthen our geographic presence in 2008, we intend to expand our team in São Paulo, Brazil.

As we enter the New Year, we wish all of our global colleagues the very best. We look forward to our continued work together to identify growth opportunities and build great companies.