What You Need to Know About Investing in Private Equity

NEW YORK ( TheStreet) -- Individual investors have long been shut out of buying shares in privately held companies. But recent regulatory changes have now opened the private equity market to accredited investors. The question is, should you be jumping in? Must Read: 10 Stocks Carl Icahn Loves in 2014 First, a little background. Private equity -- as opposed to stocks listed and traded on public stock exchanges -- represents a $426 billion market in the U.S. More importantly, it has consistently o...