Private Equity 3d Briefing
×Market Moves
Robinhood's startup fund techcrunch.com stumbled in its NYSE debut, offering retail investors exposure to eight startups including Mercor, Ramp, and Stripe. February closed with the largest startup investment of all time — OpenAI's $110 billion financing — but did not bring a jump in overall deal count, including by many active investors. The first week of March was a relatively brisk period for large startup funding rounds, led by three deals of $500 million or more in the space tech and AI infrastructure sectors.
Deal Activity
Wynnchurch-backed ORS Nasco pehub.com scooped up industrial wholesalers AD Member Supply and Alliance, expanding its MRO product distribution footprint. Greenbelt-backed Saber Power pehub.com snapped up Bounds Construction, strengthening its electrical power system services capabilities. Serent pehub.com invested in health tech firm Saisystems to accelerate its technology roadmap. Littlejohn pehub.com invested in power infrastructure consulting firm GDS Associates, while Littlejohn-backed Ardurra pehub.com acquired Remington & Vernick Engineers for engineering expansion.
Fundraising & Strategy
EQT, Eurazeo, and Atomico pe-insights.com were shortlisted to manage the European Union's planned €5 billion technology investment fund. Bridgepoint privateequityinternational.com is mulling options for a defense investing strategy as Europe could spend as much as €14 trillion on defense and related infrastructure over the next decade. New PE firm Synergy Sports Capital pehub.com debuted with a focus on the lower middle market, while Abry Partners CEO CJ Brucato pehub.com outlined why the lower mid-market is particularly attractive.
Exits & Portfolio Moves
Mutares pe-insights.com exited its €100 million logistics platform in Time Group to Tawin Holdings, while also planning to sell Peugeot Motocycles in a management buyout. BlackPeak pehub.com sold its eu Shipments.com stake to Austrian Post, an e-commerce logistics provider serving over 1,300 online retailers across Europe. Visualize Group pehub.com picked up gaming certification lab BMM Testlabs, which serves gaming product suppliers, operators, and regulators across six continents.
Specialized Investments
Trinity Hunt pehub.com invested in Berger Consulting Group, which serves over 100 law firm clients. Tributary Group pehub.com invested in regulatory software company Softworks Group, with founder and CEO Tim Edlund continuing to lead. Vista pehub.com made a new investment in aviation software provider Portside, with current investor Insight Partners remaining a significant shareholder.
Technology & Innovation
City Detect techcrunch.com, which uses AI to help cities stay safe and clean, raised $13 million in Series A funding and is now active in at least 17 cities including Dallas and Miami. Science Corp. news.crunchbase.com, a biotech startup focused on brain-computer interface technologies founded by Neuralink alumni, raised $230 million in Series C funding. San Francisco-based Denki news.crunchbase.com, which has built AI-powered software for financial auditors at public companies, raised $4.1 million in funding.
Market Analysis
The mantra "DPI is the new IRR" has caught on across the PE industry as limited partners and general partners face unique circumstances. GP-led secondaries would appear to provide an obvious route to liquidity for staking investors, but there are some issues to iron out. GP-led deal volume hit an all-time high in 2025, but record growth doesn't necessarily equate to LP satisfaction with continuation vehicle processes. With evergreen fund investment in GP-led deals on the rise, questions remain about how compatible these transactions are with vehicles offering periodic liquidity.
Industry Trends
Active investors spent more on fewer deals in February, with February's largest startup investment being OpenAI's $110 billion financing. The secondaries market is taking stock of macro events, which could lead to some movements around pricing. As the secondaries market braces itself for the next round of macroeconomic uncertainty, there is a playbook based on previous choppy markets. The GP-led market is going from strength to strength, but there are still challenges to address.
Regional Developments
Europe could spend as much as €14 trillion on defense and related infrastructure over the next decade, per a white paper from the Carlyle Group. Quantum scaleup Pasqal is planning to go public at a $2 billion valuation. France's tech unicorns-in-waiting are attracting investor attention, while Denmark's startup ecosystem continues to produce notable companies to watch.
Regulatory & Market Structure
Antitrust landscape is shaping life science deals, with Astorg's portfolio company Solabia acquiring three complementary businesses as its first acquisitions since Astorg's investment in October 2025. The gender disparity in UK financial services shows no improvement, finds Fox & Partners. GPs seek to downplay fears that executives will lose roles to AI, while consolidation is creating GP selection headaches for LPs.