Michael Prahl

Michael is an INSEAD Distinguished Fellow attached to INSEAD's Global Private Equity Initiative (GPEI) with a focus on LBOs and Asian Private Equity. Based out of Hong Kong, Michael is a founding partner at Asia-IO Advisors, an asset manager focused on implementing innovative, thesis-driven Asia/Asia-nexus private equity co-investment programs for an alliance of large institutional and corporate investors.

An INSEAD alumnus, Michael served as GPEI’s Executive Director from 2010 to 2015 and was instrumental in shaping all aspects of the centre’s activity and developing its core research agenda. During his tenure as Executive Director, Michael oversaw the expansion of the Centre’s research and outreach activities and drove specific research projects related to co-investments, risk & return propositions in emerging markets PE and family offices. Michael continues to engage directly with the INSEAD community as an Adjunct Professor teaching the MBA Leveraged Buyout elective.

Prior to joining GPEI, Michael spent nine years with Apax Partners, a global private equity firm. He worked on some of the most high profile retail and consumer investments for Apax in Europe and the US including regular buyouts, public to privates, PIPE's, minority investments and privatisations. He moved to Hong Kong beginning of 2006 to help set up Apax Partners' Asian operations. Prior to Apax Partners, Michael was associated with the Corporate Venture Capital arm of Deutsche Telekom and The Boston Consulting Group.

Michael is a graduate of INSEAD (MBA) and Handelshochschule Leipzig (MSc Business) and holds undergraduate degrees in business and law.

Education

• MBA INSEAD (2004 — 2005)
• Dipl. Kfm. HHL Handelshochschule Leipzig (1998.09 — 2000.08)

Companies

• Senior Investment Professional ACE Equity Partners (2020)
• Partner Asia-IO Advisors Limited (2015)
• Adjunct Professor of Entrepreneurship & Family INSEAD (2014)
• Executive Director, Global PE Initiative (GPEI) INSEAD (2010 — 2015)
• Principal Apax Partners (2001 — 2009)

Skills

• Mergers
• LBO
• Strategy