private investment in public equities


Private Investment in Public Equity

The form of equity financing in which a private investment company purchases a certain amount of stock in a publicly-traded company at a discount from its market value. Publicly-traded companies commit to PIPE in order to raise equity without going through expense and regulatory issues involved in making a secondary offering. This form of financing is popular especially with small and medium-sized publicly-traded companies, as they often lack the resources to raise capital using other methods.

There are two types of PIPE. A traditional PIPE allows the private investment company to simply buy stock in the publicly-traded company. This is a direct form of equity financing. A structured PIPE, however, involves the publicly-traded company issuing a certain amount of convertible debt. This carries less risk for the private investment company and does not dilute the publicly-traded company's shares outstanding, at least not immediately. See also: Venture capital.

private investment in public equities (PIPE)

Private equity deals in which major investors purchase substantial amounts of the stock of public corporations, generally at significant discounts to market prices. PIPEs are especially popular during periods when financial markets are difficult to tap for public funding.