Private Equity's Foggy Forebears

Wall Street is abuzz with talk of private equity shops going public, but some investors are saying been there, done that.

Talk is that big private-equity offerings will give mom and pop investors an opportunity to piggyback on the outsize gains that private equity firms have rung up over the past several decades. Last month, Blackstone Group filed for a $4 billion initial public offering. This week, chatter emerged that another titan of the private equity business, Leon Black's Apollo management, is considering an IPO.

But Malon Wilkus, CEO of alternative asset management firm American Capital Strategies (ACAS Quote), says there's nothing novel about investment companies tapping the public markets for the purpose of taking over or investing in other companies. ...