10. CVC Capital Partners
London, United Kingdom
The only non-US company on our list, CVC Capital Partners are based in London. Their origin, however, is American, since the company was founded as the European branch of Citicorp Venture Capital in 1981. They exited Citicorp system in 1993. Immediately following the split, Citicorp invested large funds in CVC’s newly raised $300 million fund. Their orientation was toward leveraged buyouts from the start and by 2000 they were considered the largest and most successful private equity firm in Europe. Among their acquisitions are Formula 1, Breitling, and Petco.
