Private equity. What even is it? Think of private equity firms as really sophisticated house flippers.

But instead of renovating kitchens and bathrooms, they're renovating entire businesses.

PE is wonderful, everyone loves it, and what could possibly go wrong? Right? Well, not quite.

Your favorite protein bar tastes like shit now? Maybe it's private equity. Your local

auto repair shop charges twice as much now,

probably private equity. These companies are to make money, not to help people.

What's up, Rich Friends? I'm your host, Vivian 2, aka Your Rich BFF and your favorite Wall Street Girlie.

Today, we are doing a deep dive into everybody's favorite and definitely not confusing at all topic, private equity.

What even is it? What does it do? And why does everybody seem to hate it?

Private equity touches way more of your daily life than you probably realize,

that coffee shop you love could be PE-owned, your favorite restaurant chain, probably backed by

private equity, and even some of the apps on your phone, yep, funded through private equity money.

So today, we are going to break down exactly what private equity is, how it actually works,

and most importantly, what it means for you. Let's get into it. Support for the show comes from Bumble. In dating, just like in finance, you tend to get out what you put in. The more intention and openness you bring to the table, the more likely you are to see the kinds of returns that matter. Deep, lasting connections. That's why I'm excited to talk to you about Bumble today's sponsor.

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about dating, you can jump right in with Bumble. So first and foremost, what even is private equity?

Private equity, simply put, is just ownership of a company that is not publicly traded on a stock exchange. So if you're an entrepreneur who owns your company and other people can't buy stock in your brand, that's technically private equity. I have private equity in your rich BFF because I own the company and you, somebody listening

at home, cannot buy into my company.

Your neighborhood baker owns the private equity in her bakery.

Now, what people typically refer to as private equity is more so the private equity industry.

This is the process of raising money from investors and using that money

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