Private Equity 24-Hour Briefing
×Last updated: October 7, 2026, 6:04 AM ET
Private Equity Deal Activity
Searchlight and Fitzroy are acquiring credit manager Kredinor from Spare Bank 1 Gruppen, adding to their European specialty finance platform. Eurazeo is buying a majority stake in water efficiency specialist Miya, targeting utilities seeking to reduce non-revenue water losses. Littlejohn’s Ardurra has struck a deal for Texas-based water engineering firm eHT, expanding its public-sector infrastructure footprint. Bridgepoint-backed SAMY is purchasing US creator marketing agency Get Engaged to bolster its digital media portfolio. Vance Street’s Fumex has acquired Montreal air filtration firm Filtrabox, enhancing its environmental technology holdings. Beach Point is investing in Fullers Foods to provide liquidity for Quilvest, supporting its outsourced procurement operations. Gryphon’s TTDS has added heat transfer specialist Thermal Products as an add-on acquisition, strengthening its industrial capabilities. Sterling Group’s Foundation Fund has acquired Slingmax from River Associates, expanding its engineered solutions portfolio in the lower mid-market. FFL Partners has invested in newly rebranded medical device servicer Ally Technical, which services over 3,000 contracts nationwide. Apheon has acquired a majority stake in dental instruments maker Hager & Meisinger, known for high-precision rotary instruments under the Meisinger brand.
Major Take-Private and Growth Capital Moves
CD&R and McKesson have inked a $5.8bn take-private deal for Option Care Health, the largest home and alternate site infusion services provider in the US, marking one of the year’s biggest healthcare buyouts. Prelude Growth has exited Made Good as the founding family buys back its minority stake in the Ontario-based organic snack brand. Avance has hired ex-Invesco Private Capital PE head Carl Stanton as senior partner to lead its industrial growth strategy. One Rock has appointed former Bridgestone Americas CEO Paolo Ferrari as operating partner to drive post-acquisition value creation in its industrial portfolio.
Venture and Growth Equity Highlights
Sifted has published its list of the top 10 investors backing Europe’s fastest-growing startups and scaleups, highlighting shifting capital concentration. The same outlet has named Slush’s inaugural list of 20 tech talents under, spotlighting emerging European innovators. Spiko has raised $90m in Series B funding led by Index Ventures and Speedinvest to scale its AI-driven operations platform. Mistral has released its new flagship AI model as it seeks to close the performance gap with competitors like OpenAI and Anthropic. SAP is acquiring Belgian AI startup Tech Wolf for an undisclosed sum to enhance its enterprise AI capabilities in skills intelligence. Tech Crunch Venture has revealed the full breakout session agenda for Tech Crunch Disrupt 2026, promising deep dives on scaling and emerging tech challenges.
Sector-Specific and Strategic Developments
Sifted has reported that European defence tech is facing a reality check as growth expectations clash with procurement delays and funding constraints. The same publication has examined whether Europe’s secondaries boom is primarily serving the top 1% of investors, raising concerns about access and democratization in the private markets. Antin Infrastructure Partners’ Stephan Feilhauer has discussed opportunities in aerial firefighting, while Broad Sky’s Adam Glucksman outlined Frontline Managed Services’ growth strategy amid increasing climate-related demand. Partners Group’s Middle River Power has bought a California gas plant from Ares, acquiring the fully contracted 427MW Panoche Energy Center to expand its regulated power portfolio. Crunchbase News has shown that AI’s most active startups are becoming serial acquirers, driving a surge in M&A activity as they seek to consolidate capabilities and talent. Finally, PE International has noted that NYC pension is leaning into credit amid the private equity slump, reflecting a broader institutional shift toward private credit as an offensive and defensive play in volatile markets.