Guy Hands Announces Departure from Terra Firma Private Equity
Stepping down: Guy Hands
Guy Hands, one of Britain’s most prominent financiers, has announced his departure from Terra Firma, his private equity firm, after a successful career spanning more than 20 years.
In an internal memo, Hands, known for building Terra Firma into one of Europe’s top investment firms, revealed his retirement plans. He stated, “I had vowed that I would retire from the firm ‘when I’m 64,’ as per the eponymous Beatles song. That time has now come as I approach my 64th birthday this August.”
During his tenure, Hands oversaw investments totaling £15.6 billion across 39 businesses since Terra Firma’s establishment as part of Japanese investment bank Nomura in 1994. The firm was later spun out of the bank in 2002.
Notable ventures under Hands’ leadership included the acquisition of record label EMI and care home operator Four Seasons Health Care. However, the EMI deal ended disastrously when the company collapsed shortly after the £4.2 billion takeover in 2007, resulting in significant losses for Terra Firma. Hands subsequently pursued a legal battle against investment bank Citigroup, accusing them of fraud, but ultimately dropped his claim in 2016.
Facing challenges and setbacks, Terra Firma struggled to raise funds and fell behind its competitors in the private equity sector. Additionally, the ownership of Four Seasons also ended in disaster when the company went into administration in 2019.
Despite his departure from Terra Firma, Hands will continue to be involved with his family office, Hands Family Investments. He stated, “To be clear, I will continue to be involved in the portfolio businesses that are Hands Family Investments… I will therefore continue to sit on the boards that work with those investments.”
Known for his outspoken nature, Hands has been a vocal critic of Brexit and expressed concerns about the investment outlook for the UK. He also drew attention in 2020 for criticizing fellow dealmakers for prioritizing financial gains over company improvement and job creation.
Denial of responsibility! VigourTimes is an automatic aggregator of Global media. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, and all materials to their authors. For any complaint, please reach us at – [email protected]. We will take necessary action within 24 hours.
