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NEW YORK (AP) - Blackstone Group LP, one of the world's biggest private equity firms, on Thursday said it seeks to raise up to $4 billion in a highly anticipated initial public offering. The New York-based firm, known for multibillion dollar takeovers such as February's buyout of Equity Office Properties, announced its intentions to go public in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm plans to list on the New York Stock Exchange.
Blackstone — founded in 1985 by former Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. bankers Stephen Schwarzman and Peter Peterson — said the initial public offering will allow it to tap new sources of capital for buyouts. In addition, it helps extend Blackstone's brand name and gives management a way to profit from the increased value of their stakes.
The deal ends more than a week of speculation that Schwarzman planned to turn the firm — known globally for bringing major companies private — into a public entity. The regulatory filing also sheds new light on the tightly-held buyout shop.
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