文本选自：The Atlantic（大西洋月刊）
作者：Rogé Karma
原文标题：The Secretive Industry Devouring the U.S. Economy
原文发布时间：30 Oct. 2023
The Secretive Industry Devouring the U.S. Economy
The publicly traded company is disappearing. In 1996, about 8,000 firms were listed in the U.S. stock market. Since then, the national economy has grown by nearly $20 trillion. The population has increased by 70 million people. And yet, today, the number of American public companies stands at fewer than 4,000. How can that be?
One answer is that the private-equity industry is devouring them. When a private-equity fund buys a publicly traded company, it takes the company private—hence the name. (If the company has not yet gone public, the acquisition keeps that from happening. ) This gives the fund total control, which in theory allows it to find ways to boost profits so that it can sell the company for a big payday a few years later. In practice, going private can have more troubling consequences. The thing about public companies is that they're, well, public. By law, they have to disclose information about their finances, operations, business risks, and legal liabilities. Taking a company private exempts it from those requirements.
That may not have been such a big deal when private equity was a niche industry. Today, however, it's anything but. In 2000, private-equity firms managed about 4 percent of total U.S. corporate equity. By 2021, that number was closer to 20 percent. In other words, private equity has been growing nearly five times faster than the U.S. economy as a whole.
隐藏在背后的行业吞噬了美国经济
精听党背景导读
私募股权基金起源于美国。19世纪末20世纪初，有不少富有的私人银行家通过律师、会计师的介绍和安排，将资金投资于风险较大的石油、钢铁、铁路等新兴产业，这类投资完全是由投资者个人决策，没有专门的机构进行组织，这就是私募股权基金的雏形。
文本选自：The Atlantic（大西洋月刊）作者：Rogé Karma原文标题：The Secretive Industry Devouring the U.S. Economy原文发布时间：30 Oct. 2023关键词：私募股权 毁灭 经济
精听党带着问题听
1.“狼吞虎咽”用英语可以如何表达？2. 如何理解第三段的“it’s anything but”？3. 目前私募股权公司管理的股权约占美国公司总股本的多少？
精听党选段赏析
标题解读
The Secretive Industry Devouring the U.S. Economy
隐藏在背后的行业吞噬了美国经济
secretive adj. 守口如瓶的，秘密的；1. The secretive organization operates in the shadows, away from public scrutiny. 这个神秘的组织在阴影中运作，远离公众的监视。
devour vt. 吞食，狼吞虎咽；1. The hungry lion will devour its prey within minutes. 饥饿的狮子将在几分钟内吞食掉猎物。
段一
The publicly traded company is disappearing. In 1996, about 8,000 firms were listed in the U.S. stock market. Since then, the national economy has grown by nearly $20 trillion. The population has increased by 70 million people. And yet, today, the number of American public companies stands at fewer than 4,000. How can that be?
publicly traded company 公开上市公司；
disappear vi. 消失，不见；失踪，丢失；不复存在，灭绝；
list vt. 列清单，拟订清单；把…列入名单；（使）（公司）上市；
trillion n. 万亿；
and yet 然而，尽管如此；1. The weather forecast predicted rain, and yet the sun is shining brightly today. 天气预报预测有雨，然而今天阳光明媚。
参考译文
上市公司正在逐渐消失。1996年，美国股市有大约8,000家上市公司。自那时起，国家经济增长了近20万亿美元。人口增加了7000万。然而，今天，美国上市公司的数量少于4,000家。这怎么可能？
段二
One answer is that the private-equity industry is devouring them. When a private-equity fund buys a publicly traded company, it takes the company private—hence the name. (If the company has not yet gone public, the acquisition keeps that from happening.) This gives the fund total control, which in theory allows it to find ways to boost profits so that it can sell the company for a big payday a few years later. In practice, going private can have more troubling consequences. The thing about public companies is that they’re, well, public. By law, they have to disclose information about their finances, operations, business risks, and legal liabilities. Taking a company private exempts it from those requirements.
private-equity industry 私募股权行业；1. equity n. 公平，公正；资产净值；普通股；
hence adv. 因此；之后；
not yet 还没有；1. Is the report finished? No, it's not yet complete. 报告完成了吗？不，还没有完成。
go public 上市，公开上市；1. The company decided to go public to raise capital for expansion. 该公司决定上市以筹集扩张所需的资金。
acquisition n. 收购，购并；1. The acquisition of the competitor's business expanded our market share. 对竞争对手业务的收购扩大了我们的市场份额。
keep…from happening 阻止…发生，防止…发生；1. His quick thinking kept a disaster from happening. 他的迅速反应阻止了一场灾难的发生。
boost profit 提高利润；
payday n. 发薪日；交割日；1. On payday, employees are excited to receive their salaries. 发薪日，员工们都兴奋地领取工资。
troubling adj. 令人担忧的，令人不安的；1. The troubling news about the economy has many people concerned. 关于经济的令人担忧的消息让很多人感到担忧。
consequence n. 后果，结果；1. Every action has consequences, so it's important to consider your choices carefully. 每个行为都会有后果，因此要慎重考虑你的选择。
disclose vt. 揭示，透露，公开；
legal liability 法律责任；
exempt from 豁免于；免除；1. exempt from taxation 免税；
参考译文
其中一个答案是私募股权行业正在消耗它们。当私募股权基金收购一家上市公司时，它会将该公司私有化——这就是其名称的由来。（如果公司尚未上市，此次收购将阻止其上市。）这给了该基金全面的控制权，从理论上讲，这使它能够找到提高利润的方法，以便在几年后出售该公司以获得大笔收入。但在实践中，私有化可能会带来更麻烦的后果。上市公司的特点就是它们是公开的。根据法律，它们必须披露有关财务、运营、商业风险和法律责任的信息。将公司私有化可以使其免除这些要求。
段三
That may not have been such a big deal when private equity was a niche industry. Today, however, it’s anything but. In 2000, private-equity firms managed about 4 percent of total U.S. corporate equity. By 2021, that number was closer to 20 percent. In other words, private equity has been growing nearly five times faster than the U.S. economy as a whole.
niche n.（适合某个特定群体或用途的）小众市场；市场定位；1. The company found a profitable niche in the organic food market. 该公司在有机食品市场找到了一个有利可图的小众市场。
it’s anything but 远非，完全不是；1. The movie was advertised as a comedy, but it's anything but funny. 这部电影被宣传为喜剧，但完全不好笑。
corporate equity 公司权益，企业股权；
in other words 换句话说，也就是说；
as a whole 作为一个整体；1. The team needs to work together as a whole to achieve success. 团队需要作为一个整体共同努力才能取得成功。
参考译文
当私募股权还是一个小众行业时，这可能不是什么大问题。然而，今天的情况完全不同。在2000年，私募股权公司管理的股权约占美国公司总股本的4%。到2021年，这个数字接近20%。换句话说，私募股权的增长速度几乎是整个美国经济的五倍。
精听党每日单词
secretive
/ˈsiːkrətɪv/ adj. 守口如瓶的，秘密的；
devour
/dɪˈvaʊər/ vt. 吞食，狼吞虎咽；
publicly traded company
公开上市公司；
disappear
/ˌdɪsəˈpɪr/ vi. 消失，不见；失踪，丢失；不复存在，灭绝；
list
/lɪst/ vt. 列清单，拟订清单；把…列入名单；（使）（公司）上市；
trillion
/ˈtrɪljən/ n. 万亿；
and yet
然而，尽管如此；
private-equity industry
私募股权行业；
hence
/hens/ adv. 因此；之后；
not yet
还没有；
go public
上市，公开上市；
acquisition
/ˌækwɪˈzɪʃ(ə)n/ n. 收购，购并；
keep…from happening
阻止…发生，防止…发生；
boost profit
提高利润；
payday
/ˈpeɪdeɪ/ n. 发薪日；交割日；
troubling
/ˈtrʌblɪŋ/ adj. 令人担忧的，令人不安的；
consequence
/ˈkɑːnsɪkwens/ n. 后果，结果；
disclose
/dɪsˈkloʊz/ vt. 揭示，透露，公开；
legal liability
法律责任；
exempt from
豁免于；免除；
niche
/niːʃ/ n.（适合某个特定群体或用途的）小众市场；市场定位；
it’s anything but
远非，完全不是；
corporate equity
公司权益，企业股权；
in other words
换句话说，也就是说；
as a whole
作为一个整体；
精听党文化拓展
私募基金，是指以非公开方式向特定投资者募集资金并以特定目标为投资对象的证券投资基金。私募基金是以大众传播以外的手段招募，发起人集合非公众性多元主体的资金设立投资基金，进行证券投资。
基金按是否面向一般大众募集资金分为公募与私募，按主投资标的又可分为证券投资基金（标的为股票），期货投资基金（标的为期货合约）、货币投资基金（标的为外汇）、黄金投资基金（标的为黄金）、FOF fund of fund（基金投资基金，标的为PE与VC基金），REITS real estate Investment Trusts（房地产投资基金，标的为房地产），TOT trust of trust（信托投资基金，标的为信托产品），对冲基金（又叫套利基金，标的为套利空间），以上这么多基金形态，很多都是西方国家有，在中国只有此类概念而并无实体（私募由于不受政策限制，投资标的灵活，所以私募是有的）。
我国私募基金行业起步较晚，行业仍存在优秀人员短缺、私募基金管理人规模小等问题，未来我国私募基金行业仍存在较大提升空间。私募基金对促进我国产业的发展、区域经济的进步有着重要的意义，随着国家对行业的发展日益重视，私募基金相关政策标准正在不断完善，未来私募基金行业进入门槛将逐步提升。
精听党每日美句
"Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts." - Winston Churchill
“成功不是终点，失败不是终结：真正重要的是持续前进的勇气。”——温斯顿·丘吉尔