This week, some of the top veterans in private equity -- TPG's David Bonderman, Carlyle's David Rubenstein, and KKR's George Roberts -- got together at a conference in Hong Kong. And, all in all, it was fairly depressing (hey, I guess that's what happens when you lose billions and billions of dollars).

Take Bonderman. He thinks the downturn will be protracted, calling it an L-shaped recession (the more common description is a V-shaped recession, which means there is a strong snapback). In fact, he thinks U.S. unemployment will hit 10% or so.

Then again, keep in mind that Bonderman lost about $1.3 billion on his six month investment in Washington Mutual.

Despite all this, Bonderman still has an appetite for investments. For example, he's focusing on the debt securities from hedge funds. Because of massive redemptions, the prices are at distressed levels.

Rubenstein also gave a grim presentation (he thinks the downturn can last several years). But, he is still bullish on some opportunities, especially in Asia. For example, he thinks China offers some compelling valuations and that the country may become more open to outside investments.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Streetsmart Guide to Short Selling: Techniques the Pros Use to Profit in Any Market. He is also the founder of BizEquity, a valuation website.

About a year ago, the rage in private equity was the so-called megabuyout. It seemed like no company was immune. There was even talk of $100 billion dollar deals.

Of course, the credit crunch ended the megabuyout. In fact, it ended most of the activity for private equity folks.

Yet, according to the co-founder of the Carlyle Group, David Rubenstein, things are perking up [subscription required]. His firm – like other veterans, such as The Blackstone Group (NYSE: BX) – understands market cycles. After all, these players have dealt with variety of credit crunches, such as in 1991-1992, 1998 and 2001-2002.

Rubenstein predicts we'll see a pick-up in deals over the next few months. Although, the deals are likely to range from $2 billion to $4 billion, with less debt. And expect more foreign deals.

Funny enough, Rubenstein seems to be leading the charge with its recently announced a $2.54 billion deal for a majority stake in Booz Allen Hamilton.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements. He also operates MergerBook.com.

David Rubenstein of the Carlyle Group was scheduled to speak at the Wharton Private Equity Forum in Philadelphia this morning, but his speech was interrupted by protesters from the Service Employees International Union. Eventually, the Philadelphia police arrived and 'escorted' the protesters away.

The protest was inspired by Carlyle's purchase of Toledo-based ManorCare, the largest chain of nursing homes in the U.S. (There's a photo of the protest over at DealBreaker, featuring a large banner that was unfurled at the conference, reading "Carlyle: Fix Manor Care nursing homes! NOW.") A flier handed out by the SEIU at the protest asked Carlyle to "Put People Above Profits." Seems that the union suspects that Carlyle might try to make money through other people's suffering -- and indeed make some people's suffering worse in the pursuit of profits.

The union's website dedicated to Carlyle and other private equity big shots states that it is "concerned that Carlyle's business practices may put everyday Americans at risk by endangering public services, imperiling the environment, jeopardizing the health of vulnerable senior citizens, and supporting human rights abuses abroad." Of course, SEIU is not alone is these concerns. Some Democrats have called for Congress to investigate the situation.

Apparently, Rubenstein was initially shocked by the protest, but recovered in time to mock the protesters' proletarian language skills, urging one woman to "take a remedial course in English before you go any further." His speech eventually got under way, and in it he admitted that the image of private equity is now "tarnished." But private equity is about to enter a new golden age -- actually, a "platinum age," as he called it -- and as long as private equity firms can do a better job at promoting themselves and doing things like giving generously to charity, all should be well. After all, capitalism is a "combat sport." An interesting sport, though, that requires police intervention to protect one side against the other.

This week, the co-founder of the Carlyle Group, David Rubenstein, paid $21.3 million for a copy of the Magna Carta. In an offbeat way, is this a sign of optimism for the private equity space?

Well, today Rubenstein gave an interview with CNBC. Basically, he thinks there are some compelling investment opportunities – especially in energy, healthcare, and financial services. What's more, he's bullish on emerging markets. He's not only excited about China but even Africa and the Middle East. For example, in Africa, Rubenstein thinks there are opportunities for mining and minerals, financial services, and telecom.

Although things may be remain somewhat slow in terms of deal activity, at least in the U.S., Rubenstein thinks sellers may be in denial on valuations. Also, to get deals done, private equity funds will probably need to pony up more equity. But, with the huge amounts of capital in these funds, that shouldn't be hard to do.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements. He also operates DealProfiles.com.

It's been fairly slow for private equity deal makers lately. So what to do? How about spend $21.3 million for the Magna Carta?

Well, that's what Carlyle's co-founder, David Rubenstein, did yesterday at Sotheby's.

Actually, Rubenstein is a political junkie. That is, he served in President Carter's White House (as deputy domestic policy advisor). His political savvy has been a nice complement to his deal making.

Of course, the Magna Carta is an amazing document, which helped to spark revolutions, such as free speech and even capitalism.

The good news is that Rubenstein isn't going to have the document as an ornament for his office. Instead, he plans to lend it to the National Archives.

The prior owner was the outspoken billionaire, Ross Perot, who purchase the document in 1983 for a mere $1.5 million.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements. He also operates DealProfiles.com.

One of the pioneers of private equity is The Carlyle Group. The firm has minted billions and is a major force in finance, managing about $76 billion.

But lately things have cooled off. For example, Carlyle's Blue Wave hedge fund is down 9.3% for the year (this is according to a piece on Bloomberg.com). The problem was exposure to pesky mortgage investments.

So it should be no surprise that Carlyle's co-founder, David Rubenstein, is kind of glum. He recently commiserated for the folks at the American Enterprise Institute (there was also coverage in TheDeal.com, which is a paid publication).

Rubenstein thinks that private equity may be facing some tough times, and looks at the parallels of the conglomerates of the 1960s.

It's a pretty apt analogy. After all, as private equity firms get bigger and bigger, they look like bloated entities of disparate business units. In other words, might there be lots of complications in managing all this?

I think so.

Besides, the other big issue is finding liquidity for these private companies. Keep in mind that the IPO market has yet to recover from its boom days of the 1990s. And, M&A appears to be tailing off. Oh, and with the credit crunch, how will private equity funds get financing for deals?

So far, there aren't many clear answers. Or, at least Rubenstein isn't giving us any ideas so far.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements. He also operates DealProfiles.com.

At the Private Equity Analyst Conference in New York yesterday, the co-founder of the Carlyle Group, David Rubenstein, has continued to be oblique on the question of going public. Hey, in light of the Blackstone (NYSE: BX) debacle, I can understand why.

Well, according to the Wall Street Journal [a paid service], Carlyle is taking another approach (at least for now). That is, the firm has snagged a $1.35 billion private investment from Mubadala Development Company, which is part of Abu Dhabi. Essentially, this places a hefty $20 billion valuation on Carlyle.

It's an important move. Carlyle wants to have a permanent source of capital, which can help with minority investment opportunities and even buying up other private equity firms.

Plus, in order to keep up the growth momentum, Carlyle needs to expand into new markets, such as the Middle East.

The investment points out something else: Abu Dhabi is quite bullish on the global financial markets. Besides its Carlyle investment, the government (which controls the United Arab Emirates) is also taking a large position in the NASDAQ as well as the London Stock Exchange.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements

At the beginning of this year, I wrote that Carlyle Group co-founder David Rubenstein was predicting that emerging markets would see a surge in private equity activity.

While he didn't say that the private equity money would be departing the West for that region, that may be what has happened. According to The New York Times, private equity firms are setting new records with the size of the buyouts funds they are raising for Asian markets: "... investors are expected to commit $25 billion more in the second half of this year to private equity funds in Asia, according to the Center for Asia Private Equity Research. That would be on top of $15.4 billion in fresh capital committed to regional funds in the first half of 2007, a rise of 57 percent over the period a year earlier."

With $35.7 billion in unallocated funds ready to be invested in the region, emerging markets could see private equity fueling a continued bull market. In addition, the confidence of firms like Carlyle, KKR, and TPG should assuage investors' concerns about the region. None of these firms have a reputation for speculative investment, and the rapid growth may be for real this time.

Use ETFConnect.com to find an emerging markets ETF for your portfolio if you don't already have one..

David Rubenstein, who is the co-founder of private equity firm The Carlyle Group, has been buying and selling companies since 1987. Now his firm has 30 offices around the globe, as well as $71 billion under management.

Interestingly enough, back in the 1970s, he served in a variety of political seats -- such as the Deputy Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy (under the Carter Administration). He has also practiced law for several prestigious law firms.

So what are his thoughts on the recent turmoil in the private equity world? Well, he gave an interview for the Wall Street Journal [a paid publication]. Basically, his opinions are in-line with those of other top dealmakers, such as from the Blackstone Group (NYSE: BX) and Fortress (NYSE: FIG). That is, we won't see mega deals (because financing has vaporized).

Also, sellers will need to get more realistic on valuations, which is never easy. In fact, many just may rather wait to do deals. In other words, private equity firms will need to work much harder to get strong returns -- and it will require more patience (Rubenstein thinks this could take a couple years).

By the way, Rubenstein has a new book that will hit the shelves soon: Beyond Wall Street: The Rise of Private Equity and the Future of Investing. It should be a good read.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements

To pursue private equity or not to? That is the multi-billion dollar question for dealmakers.

And that's the question in a recent piece in the Wall Street Journal [subscription only].

As is always the case in these matters, there are major differences of opinion. There are unabashed bulls like Henry Kravis of KKR and there are bears like the Carlyle Group's David Rubenstein.

Given the easy credit and the bull market, it's been fairly easy to do deals. Yet, such conditions cover up mistakes.

So if history is any indication, it's only a matter of time until we see an implosion.

What's more, a key reason for the recent bull run in stock prices has been the anticipation of more and more buyout deals. But, what if private equity firms pull back? What if they wait for better valuations?

Basically, a fall-off could ultimately be a self-fulfilling prophesy. Funny enough, this would probably be a good thing for private equity firms -- because they will be able to once again get better valuations on their deals.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including the Complete M&A Handbook and the EDGAR-Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements.

Speaking at the Milken Global Conference in Los Angeles, Caryle Group co-founder David Rubenstein predicted that more buyout shops would seek access to the public markets: "To be competitive and grow they will have to [go public] so they have a currency to attract employees [and] keep employees. I wouldn't be surprised if all the major firms were public four or five years from now."

However, Rubenstein conceded that a desire by insiders to cash out could also fuel the drive for public offerings: "There's also a generational issue. The founders of all these firms are in their mid-50s, late-50s or early 60s. And they probably want to take some money off the table before they are unable to do so."

Rubenstein added that the current private equity landscape "couldn't be any better" but warned that, "At some point it will turn."

Of course, Rubenstein is right. The surge in leveraged buyouts can't last forever. And doesn't it seem suspicious that so many private equity firms have chosen now as the time to "go public to attract and keep employees?" I think that Rubenstein's second point about insiders wanting to take money off the table has more to do with it. And when all the insiders appear to be rushing to take money off the table at the same time, you have to wonder how soon "it will turn."

I hate euphemisms. They're generally used be people like politicians to give ideas completely different connotations than they would normally have. In the words of comedian George Carlin, " "The more syllables a euphemism has, the further divorced from reality it is.

So that's why I was shocked and appalled to read in the New York Times on Sunday that the Carlyle Group's David Rubenstein has decided that private equity needs to start being called "change equity." As Dealbook's Andrew Ross Sorkin points out, private equity is already a euphemism:

In the 1970s, private equity deals were called "bootstraps," which was hard for anyone to understand. In the 1980s, they became "leveraged buyouts," but that was an ugly term with negative connotations. And in the 1990s, the industry moved toward the term "private equity," which seemed a lot more polite, but has come to represent secrecy.

Will private equity get the name change Rubenstein wants? I think that it will, especially if the current boom in private equity ends the way the last private equity, nee leveraged buyout boom ended: a wave of bankruptcies, wiped-out investors, missing pensions, and the former titans of the business world being led off to jail.

After about 15 years, when people have more or less forgotten about that, but the words private equity still conjure images of blood on the streets, bootstraps/leveraged buyouts/private equity will resurface under a new name--and why not change equity?

Just so you know, I'm not predicting that this private equity boom will end the way the last one did. I'm saying that if it does, private equity will just have to come back with a new name.