China to invest $3 billion in US private equity Blackstone

Careful to avoid the kind of political opposition that resulted from its 2005 unsuccessful bid to buy US oil company UNOCAL, Chinese government this time has agreed to buy only 9% stake( 10% would have automatically made it eligible for a congressional inquiry.) in US private equity company Blackstone Group LP for $3 billion. Experts agree:

Its Blackstone interest will be just under 10 percent and is part of a trend, Blackstone co-founder Stephen Schwarzman said, of China's investment plans.

China will learn how to structure and value private equity deals, as well as gaining a network of well connected people, said James Oberweis, president of Oberweis Asset Management Inc., who oversees an $800 million China fund.

"The Blackstone deal is as much about education on how to invest as it is about the actual investment itself," Oberweis said. "From the perspective of Blackstone, what better way to increase your penetration into the fastest-growing, major economy in the world than to have that government invested in you?"

The Blackstone stake may be the beginning of a trend of buying binge by China in US companies.
The Chinese insisted that they do not want any voting power in the Blackstone board.