 | |
 Headquarters atSalesforce Tower | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Private equity |
| Founded | 1984; 42 years ago (1984) |
| Founder | Warren Hellman Tully Friedman |
| Headquarters | Salesforce Tower San Francisco, California, United States |
| Products | |
| AUM | US$107.5 billion (March 2025)[1] |
| Total assets | US$25 billion |
Number of employees | 200+ (2025) |
| Website | www |
Hellman & Friedman (H&F) is an Americanprivate equity firm founded in 1984 byWarren Hellman[2][3] andTully Friedman that makes investments primarily throughleveraged buyouts as well asgrowth capital investments. It has focused its efforts on several core target industries includingmedia,financial services,professional services andinformation services.
Headquartered inSan Francisco with offices inNew York andLondon, H&F tends to avoid asset intensive or other industrial businesses (e.g., manufacturing, chemicals, transportation). In June 2024, it ranked 13th inPrivate Equity International's PEI 300 ranking among the world's largest private equity firms.[4]
| History of private equity and venture capital |
|---|
| Early history |
| (origins of modernprivate equity) |
| The 1980s |
| (leveraged buyout boom) |
| The 1990s |
| (leveraged buyout and the venture capital bubble) |
| The 2000s |
| (dot-com bubble to thecredit crunch) |
| The 2010s |
| (expansion) |
| The 2020s |
| (COVID-19 recession) |
Before founding H&F in 1984 alongside Tully Friedman, Warren Hellman worked ininvestment banking atLehman Brothers.[5][6] Later, he became a founding partner of Hellman, Ferri Investment Associates, which, renamedMatrix Partners, is currently one of the most prominent venture capital firms in the U.S.
Meanwhile, Friedman was a former managing director atSalomon Brothers who, in 1997, left the company to foundFriedman Fleischer & Lowe, a private equity firm also based in San Francisco.[7][8]
In August 2013, it acquiredCanada's largest insurance broker,Hub International, for around $4.4 billion.[9] In March 2014, the firm acquiredRenaissance Learning, a firm providing assessment methods such as electronic tests that adapt questions in real time depending on how successfully the student is answering, for $1.1 billion in cash.[10]
In February 2015, it was announced that Hellman & Friedman were putting together a takeover bid for used car companyAuto Trader, which could amount to an offer of £2 billion.[11] On May 18, 2017, H&F made a A$2.9 billion bid forFairfax Media inAustralia, starting abidding war with TPG Group for the company.[12]
In May 2016, H&F agreed to a deal to acquire the healthcare cost management company MultiPlan Inc. for about $7.5 billion.[13] In June 2018, it was announced that Hellman & Friedman were taking a controlling interest in the security monitoring company,SimpliSafe.[14]
In February 2019, it was announced that Hellman & Friedman purchasedUltimate Software for $11 billion, an all-cash transaction.[15] Ultimate Software has since been combined withKronos Incorporated, and rolled into the brandUltimate Kronos Group.[16]
In December, Hellman & Friedman acquired AutoScout24, a European automotive digital marketplace, for €2.9 billion fromScout24.[17] In 2020, H&F joinedDiligent Corporation's Modern Leadership Initiative and pledged to create five new board roles among its portfolio companies for racially diverse candidates.[18][19]
In July 2021, it was announced that Hellman & Friedman purchasedAt Home.[20] In November, H&F andBain Capital agreed to buyAthenahealth for $17 Billion.[21]
In March 2022, Hellman & Friedman acquired a 7.5% stake in software solutions company Splunk. The stake was valued at $1.4 billion, making it the largest shareholder.[22]
On April 1, 2025, it supported the merger of accounting and consulting firmsBaker Tilly andMoss Adams, in a transaction that created one of the largest multidisciplinary professional services firms in the U.S.[23] As part of the deal, H&F made an additional strategic investment in Baker Tilly to support the combined entity's long-term growth.[24]
Also in April, Hellman & Friedman joined CVC Capital Partners in a strategic investment inMehiläinen, a Finnish private provider of healthcare and social care services. As part of the transaction, Mehiläinen also announced agreements to acquire Romanian healthcare providerRegina Maria and Serbian network MediGroup, expanding its presence in Central and Eastern Europe.[25][26]
A core element in H&F's strategy is investing in "growth" opportunities whether in an industry sector or a specific company. H&F invests in a variety of structures, frequently making minority investments with only limited controls. Additionally, H&F has taken a number of unconventional steps to finance and close transactions, including arranging and syndicating the financing for several investments includingGetty Images andGoodman Global.[27]
Since closing its sixthprivate equity fund in 2007, H&F has been active in making new investments:
H&F invests through a series of private equity funds (structured aslimited partnerships) and its investors include a variety ofpension funds,endowments and otherinstitutional investors:
