Private Equity 24 Hours

Last updated: March 24, 2026, 2:30 AM ET

Dealmaking & Exits

Private equity firms navigating exit challenges are increasingly opting for partial sales or extended sellside preparation periods, according to a report from West Monroe Exit difficulties lead to partial sales. This environment contrasts with the potential blockbuster exit of TK Elevator being explored by Advent and Cinven, estimated around €25 billion, with Kone reportedly in advanced talks for the acquisition Top private equity news. In technology divestitures, Francisco Partners is set to sell music publisher Kobalt to Brookfield-backed Primary Wave, with the management team expected to remain in place under CEO Laurent Hubert Francisco Partners to sell music publisher. Meanwhile, Olympus Partners is seeking a $1.1 billion exit for the retina business of Eye South, a US-based eye-care MSO Olympus Partners to sell EyeSouth’s retina business.

Sector-Specific Acquisitions & Investments

Activity across sectors saw Apollo and CVC jointly acquire a 37% minority stake in packaging firm Syntegon for €1.75 billion to support its next growth phase Apollo acquires 37% stake. In infrastructure, Actis finalized the purchase of a 90% stake in Singaporean environmental management company 800 Super, bringing its Southeast Asia deployment capital to $1.7 billion Actis acquires 90% of 800 Super. Defense spending remains active, as Arlington Capital announced plans to acquire Eptec Defence, a specialist in naval and defense preservation services Arlington Capital to buy Eptec Defence. Further consolidation in software occurred when Diversis acquired fintech firm LTi, with the co-founders retaining minority stakes and active involvement Diversis scoops up fintech firm.

Fundraising Milestones & Capital Deployment

Growth equity firm Lead Edge Capital successfully closed its seventh fund, securing $3.5 billion specifically earmarked for software investments Lead Edge lands $3.5bn for seventh fund. In venture capital, London-based Air Street Capital raised a substantial $232 million for Fund III, focusing on early-stage AI companies in both Europe and North America Air Street becomes one of the largest solo VCs. Concurrently, the burgeoning predictions market space attracted dedicated capital, with Kalshi and Polymarket CEOs backing the $35 million debut fund of 5(c) Capital to support startups in that category Despite bitter rivalry, Kalshi, Polymarket CEOs back $35M. Japanese secondaries market participants are also active, as RGCM prepares to close its debut fund near its hard-cap, allowing flexibility across direct secondaries and primary rounds Japan secondaries shop to close debut fund.

Asset Management Shifts & Liquidity Needs

Investor appetite for liquidity is driving significant activity in the secondary private equity markets, exemplified by the University of California system seeking to offload a $3 billion portfolio University of California shops $3bn LP portfolio. This trend toward secondaries was noted by Mercer, whose acquisition of Altamar CAM provided the latter with an attractive capability in heightened liquidity interest, according to a Mercer executive Mercer acquisition brings ‘missing link’. Meanwhile, Australian LPs are facing internal governance issues, with one of the largest facing potential 'mis-selling' drama related to evergreen structures Side Letter: ‘Cardinal sin’. In institutional appointments, Aware Super named Alex Satchcroft to lead its $11 billion private equity portfolio Aware Super appoints Alex Satchcroft.

AI Infrastructure & Tech Focus

The artificial intelligence sector continues to command premium valuations, though overall US startup funding experienced a sharp slowdown in March, primarily due to fewer giant AI megarounds closing US Startup Funding Slows Sharply In March. To address bottlenecks, Gimlet Labs secured an $80 million Series A round for technology enabling AI inference across diverse chip architectures, including NVIDIA, AMD, and Intel Startup Gimlet Labs is solving the AI inference bottleneck. In a separate push, OpenAI is attempting to attract private equity capital for joint ventures by offering a guaranteed minimum return of 17.5% OpenAI offers 17.5% returns. Separately, European robotics research is attracting VC attention, with an Oxford spinout receiving funding from Amadeus Capital and OSE to address long-term memory issues in robotics Oxford spinout raises from Amadeus Capital.

Regional and Operational Updates

Asia-Pacific private equity managers face an overhang, as the number of portfolio companies held for over five years rose by 18% in 2025, according to a Bain & Co report, indicating sluggish exit activity ‘Solid exit activity’ still insufficient to clear APAC’s overhang. The Gulf region, however, remains active in energy infrastructure, with private equity and infrastructure funds targeting a $7 billion pipeline deal in Kuwait Private equity targets $7bn Kuwait pipeline deal. In firm leadership news, GTCR appointed Donnie Phillips as its Managing Director and Chief Administrative Officer in its Chicago office GTCR taps Donnie Phillips as managing director, while ECI onboarded David Danon as a new partner from his nearly two-decade tenure at Bain Capital's PE team ECI names David Danon as new partner.