Private Equity 8 Hours

Last updated: September 14, 2026, 2:16 PM ET

KKR and Realty Income Launch €528M European Net Lease JV

KKR has committed €528m to take a 49% stake in a new euro-denominated joint venture holding a portfolio of European net lease real estate, deepening the US firm's ties with Realty Income as the latter accelerates its continental push. The structure gives the NYSE-listed REIT a capital partner for a strategy that has gained traction among European institutional investors seeking inflation-linked, long-duration income.

AURELIUS Carves Out Hain's European Food Arm in €280M Deal

AURELIUS has agreed to acquire Hain International, the UK and European arm of Nasdaq-listed The Hain Celestial Group, in a cross-border carve-out carrying an enterprise value above €280m. The transaction hands the Munich-based turnaround specialist a portfolio of better-for-you food brands across the UK and continental Europe, while Hain Celestial narrows its focus to North America.

Brookfield Takes Minority Stake in Data Centre Developer AREP

Brookfield Asset Management has agreed to acquire a minority interest in American Real Estate Partners, a US institutional fund manager and data centre developer, in a wager on AI-driven demand for computing capacity. The deal adds another data centre platform to Brookfield's infrastructure and real estate book, which has been expanding rapidly as hyperscalers race to secure power and land.

CVC Prepares Partial Bamboo Exit at $3.13bn Valuation

CVC is preparing to cash in part of its stake in Bamboo Insurance Services, the US homeowners insurer it took control of just last year, through an IPO valuing the company at up to $3.13bn. The listing would mark a swift turnaround for the Luxembourg-based buyout group, which has been monetising insurance assets amid a receptive window for financial-sector issuance.

Dell Family Office Leads $7.7bn Baldwin Take-Private

An investor consortium led by DFO Management, the family office of tech billionaire Michael Dell, is closing in on a $7.7bn take-private of insurance broker The Baldwin Group, according to the FT. The deal would rank among the largest family-office-led buyouts of the year and signals continued appetite for insurance distribution assets despite elevated financing costs.

Trillium to Sell US Pumps Unit to Crane for $240M

First Reserve-backed Trillium is set to sell its US pumps unit to Crane for $240m. Trillium Pumps US, marketed under the Floway, Wemco, Roto-Jet and WSP brands, supplies mission-critical pumping solutions primarily to municipal water and wastewater markets — a segment attracting industrial buyers seeking recurring aftermarket revenue.

Carolwood Agrees to Acquire Thryv's Print Business for $142M

Carolwood has agreed to acquire Thryv's print business for $142m, including Print Yellow and White Pages operations in the US, Australia and New Zealand, along with their digital editions and Australia's White Pages online. The carve-out lets Thryv sharpen its software and marketing services focus while Carolwood bets on the cash-generative legacy directory franchise.

Step Stone Leads Continuation Vehicle for US Fertility

Step Stone has led a continuation vehicle backing Amulet's US Fertility growth. The company describes itself as the nation's largest partnership of physician-owned and physician-led fertility practices and IVF laboratories, and says it has helped more than 400,000 individuals. The deal underscores how GP-led secondaries have become a mainstream liquidity tool for healthcare assets with long-duration growth profiles.

Genstar and Aksia Back Richey May Accounting Platform

Genstar Capital and Aksia have made a growth investment in Richey May, a Denver-based accounting, tax and advisory firm operating for more than 40 years and serving clients nationwide from offices across eight states. The capital injection positions the firm to pursue add-on acquisitions in a fragmented accounting services market.

Nex Phase Invests in Everywhere Communications

Nex Phase Capital has made a growth investment in Everywhere Communications, a mission-critical software platform founded in 2016 and headquartered in Annapolis, Maryland, that helps government and enterprise clients maintain resilient communications. The deal fits Nex Phase's thesis of backing niche software providers with sticky, compliance-driven customer bases.

New Mountain Takes Minority Stake in Appleby

New Mountain Capital has taken a minority stake in Appleby, the offshore legal services platform founded by Major Reginald Appleby in Bermuda in the 1890s, which employs more than 500 people and over 200 attorneys across 11 offices in eight jurisdictions. The investment extends private capital's push into professional services firms with annuity-like fee streams.

Hunter Point Names Sonneborn President and COO

Hunter Point Capital has appointed William Sonneborn as president and chief operating officer. He joins with more than three decades in alternative investments and financial services, including leadership roles at KKR, TCW Group, EIG and Goldman Sachs, as the firm scales its GP stakes and asset management platform.

Permira Appoints Ex-Microsoft Executive Julia Liuson as Senior Adviser

Permira has named Julia Liuson as a senior adviser. Liuson previously served as president of Microsoft's Developer Division, leading its global developer business including GitHub, Visual Studio and Visual Studio Code — expertise the buyout firm can deploy across its software and technology portfolio.

Navi Med Names CFO, Promotes Bennett Mears to Principal

Navi Med Capital has appointed Holly Atallah as chief financial officer; she brings 25 years of corporate finance and investment banking experience, most recently as director of finance and operations at Broad Oak Capital Partners. The healthcare-focused firm also promoted Bennett Mears to principal.

Bain's Max de Groen Sees Deal Activity Picking Up Into 2026-27

Max de Groen, partner and co-head of Technology, North America Private Equity at Bain Capital, expects deal activity to pick up over the next year as his firm navigates AI-driven disruption in software. The outlook lands alongside Genstar and Aksia's growth investment in Richey May, adding to evidence that sponsors are reopening the deal pipeline.

Warburg Nears $17bn Target as CVC Eyes Record Fundraise

Warburg Pincus is nearing its flagship target, while CVC looks to match its record-breaking fundraise and an LP bets on private equity's distribution drought, according to Side Letter. The fundraising momentum contrasts with a still-sluggish exit environment that has forced GPs to lean on continuation vehicles and IPOs to return capital.

Open Cosmos Raises €300M Amid Space Investment Frenzy

Satellite startup Open Cosmos has raised €300m, capitalising on investor enthusiasm for space infrastructure. The round ranks among Europe's largest this year for a space venture and reflects growing appetite for Earth-observation and connectivity constellations.

ETH Zurich Students Build 'First Swiss Humanoid', Eye Fundraising

Students at ETH Zurich have built what they describe as the first Swiss humanoid robot and are now eyeing fundraising. The project adds to Europe's fast-growing humanoid robotics cohort, which has attracted increasing venture and strategic interest.

Y Combinator Tops August Investor Rankings as Nvidia Accelerates

Y Combinator remained the busiest startup investor in August, according to Crunchbase rankings spanning lead backers, prolific venture dealmakers, highest spenders and seed investors. Nvidia ramped up its dealmaking pace, underscoring how chipmakers are using balance-sheet capital to shape the AI ecosystem.

Founder Vesting Creates 'Dead Weight' on Cap Tables, Prompting Litigation

The standard four-year founder vesting schedule can leave departed founders with large equity stakes, complicating financing and control and prompting costly litigation aimed at reclaiming shares. Investors are increasingly pushing for tighter repurchase rights and milestone-based vesting to avoid cap-table drag at later rounds.

Tech Crunch Disrupt 2026: Exhibit Deadline and AI Roadmap Debate

Organisers of TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 have set Sept 18 as the last day to apply for an exhibit table, with just five days remaining to secure space on the Expo Hall floor before 10,000+ founders and investors. Separately, a session at the event will ask what happens when OpenAI ships a founder's roadmap, framing the central strategic question for AI startups: whether they can keep creating value as foundation models evolve.