Private Equity 3d Briefing
×Executive Moves & Leadership Changes
Sterling pehub.com has appointed Noah Bishop as senior vice president, where he will focus on sourcing, evaluating, and executing new platform investments while supporting value creation across portfolio companies. Cavu pehub.com promoted Jared Jacobs to managing partner, marking a leadership transition for the firm where Jacobs has been since 2017. Permira pehub.com named Giorgio Dinaro as head of Milan, succeeding Francesco Pascalizi who held the role since 2019.
Fundraising & Capital Deployment
Novacap pe-insights.com closed its $3.8 billion Tech Fund VII, surpassing its $2.75 billion target by over $1 billion. Arcmont pe-insights.com secured $1.62 billion for its complex European private credit strategy through the final close of Capital Solutions Fund II. CPP Investments secondariesinvestor.com plans to deploy approximately C$20 billion into private equity this year while considering secondaries sales to trim older exposure. Otro Capital pehub.com closed a $1.2 billion fund to pursue a broader sports ecosystem, having already invested in Flex Work Sports, Formula 1 team Alpine Racing, and Two Circles.
Deal Activity & Exits
CD&R pe-insights.com secured shareholder approval for its $6.2 billion acquisition of Sealed Air, which also received EU clearance. IOP pehub.com agreed to sell retail fixtures provider Royston to LSI Industries for $320 million, with the transaction expected to close in LSI's third quarter of fiscal 2026. Wynnchurch pehub.com will acquire Arcosa's barge business for $450 million. Gemspring pehub.com sold Security 101 to Morgan Stanley, having invested in the company in 2021.
Portfolio Company Transactions
Behrman pehub.com sold Waterline Renewal Technologies to New Mountain-based Azuria, with Waterline's brands including Perma-Liner, APM, LMK Technologies, and Light Ray. Insight Equity pehub.com acquired aerosol products maker IKI, which serves consumer and professional products companies. Renovus-backed Definian pehub.com acquired data analytics consultancy Incite. Genstar-backed Docupace pehub.com acquired fintech firm Invest Edge, while Frazier Healthcare-backed Rev Spring pehub.com acquired healthcare tech firm Trust Commerce from Waud Capital Partners.
Industry Trends & Market Outlook
Blackstone's Foley and Khan pehub.com highlighted the add-on potential of electrical products distributor Arlington within their energy transition fund portfolio, which has been involved in nine deals ranging from $800 million to $6.5 billion. Blackstone's Verdun Perry pehub.com projects exit activity will grow 30-40% in 2026, potentially marking a record year for both exits and secondaries volume. Verdane pehub.com made a £186 million bid for Augmentum Fintech, while KKR pe-insights.com is lining up a $1 billion IPO exit for Global Medical Response.
Strategic Partnerships & Initiatives
Apollo and BNP Paribas pe-insights.com are finalizing a partnership to originate European private credit deals. Ardian pe-insights.com partnered with Legal & General to provide private equity exposure to 5.6 million UK defined contribution savers. Ambienta's NDA pehub.com is making add-on acquisitions in water infrastructure, an area drawing increased PE interest. Hg launched a new initiative to drive AI adoption at portfolio companies.
Technology & AI Disruption
Inflexion's John Di Giovanni pehub.com sees "exciting" AI use cases in healthcare, while Victor Capital's Doug Korn says tariff risk has peaked. Thoma Bravo's Holden Spaht and New York's Anastasia Titarchuk pehub.com discussed how GPs and LPs view AI disruption at PEI Group's NEXUS 2026 summit. Clearlake's José E. Feliciano pehub.com addressed picking winners and losers in AI disruption during a conversation with PE Hub editor-in-chief Mary Kathleen Flynn.
Geographic & Sector Focus
La Caisse pe-insights.com grew to $378 billion after a 9.3% return in 2025, though private equity lagged its broader portfolio. OMERS pe-insights.com reported $8.2 billion in net income for 2025 with a 6% net investment return, where private equity underperformed. Private equity firms pe-insights.com have more than tripled their share of London office acquisitions, investing $1.68 billion in retrofit projects. Private equity pe-insights.com has backed next-generation football formats with over $185 million in capital, flowing into digital-first, small-sided leagues.
Regulatory & LP Relations
CalPERS pehub.com wants its GPs to improve transparency, with CEO Marcie Frost stating that more visibility on portfolio company data will help the $613.7 billion pension better manage risk. CalPERS' Marcie Frost pehub.com emphasized at NEXUS 2026 that "we're not selling assets in order to hit the payroll," focusing instead on ecosystem involvement. NEXUS panelists pehub.com noted that lack of exits and compressed PE returns are complicating LP-GP dynamics, with Mike Lazorik of Texas TRS telling delegates that LP-GP alignment "has never been more complicated."
Secondaries & Continuation Vehicles
Temasek's Azalea Investment Management secondariesinvestor.com expects more GPs to use continuation vehicles to crystallize liquidity for LPs. Secondaries Investor secondariesinvestor.com reported that 2025 saw 85 continuation vehicles close, with 40 more launching or being considered. Ardian's Wilfred Small secondariesinvestor.com told attendees at PEI's conference that today's secondaries market has evolved to "a market of asset selection and cherry picking."
Specialized Strategies
26North's Josh Harris is pursuing adjacent investing, explaining that the firm seeks to be "involved in businesses that are around that ecosystem, growing with that ecosystem, but not necessarily priced where that ecosystem would be priced." 26North's Josh Harris pehub.com warned that retail capital presents a "recipe for problems," noting that mixing unaccredited investor capital with wealth capital via differently regulated vehicles could lead to industry backlash. Brookfield-backed Radiant pehub.com merged with Ori Industries, combining Ori's distributed AI infrastructure platform with Radiant's global capabilities.