Private Equity 3 Days

Last updated: May 15, 2026, 2:32 AM ET

Major Private Equity Transactions

The private equity industry saw several blockbuster deals this week, led by Blackstone's record $1.75bn blind-pool REIT IPO targeting AI data centre investments — the largest such IPO in history. Meanwhile, Brookfield Asset Management agreed to acquire World Freight Company from EQT and PAI for approximately $1.2bn, while EQT secured backing from the Qatar Investment Authority and Porsche SE for its €8bn bid to acquire Volkswagen's marine engine business Everllence. In another marquee transaction, Carlyle emerged as a leading suitor for Jardine Matheson's pan-Asian KFC and Pizza Hut restaurant operations, and Blackstone and Airbus are anchoring a roughly €600m funding round for German drone maker Quantum Systems at a valuation near €7bn.

Fundraising Momentum

Major firms are aggressively scaling their next-generation funds. Welsh Carson is targeting $5bn for its 15th flagship vehicle focused on North American mid-market buyouts, while Verdane is seeking €1.6bn for its Edda IV fund — €500m more than its predecessor. PSG is aiming for a €3.4bn final close for its third Europe-focused software fund in the first half, and the Qatar Investment Authority committed $500m to deepen its partnership with General Atlantic. Separately, Blackstone has begun preparing its third long-hold private equity fund, according to Bloomberg sources.

PE Firm Personnel Moves

The talent market remains active. Pantheon hired Leif Lindbäck, CVC Capital Partners' former TMT Europe co-head, to lead its GP-led secondaries push, while Evercore recruited senior infrastructure secondaries talent from Campbell Lutyens as it builds out that platform in Europe. William Blair acquired Inner Circle Sports to capture GP and LP stakes in sports franchises, and Bridge Growth Partners expanded with the addition of Ragunath Ramanathan as executive partner and Zane Rowe as senior advisor. Mako recruited Vanessa Gabela as partner and head of investor relations, and Shore Capital appointed Aurelio Banda as executive operating partner to lead its industrial automation distributor platform strategy.

Growth Equity Deployments

Investors continue backing growth-stage companies across sectors. General Atlantic invested in PowerGEM, which has been backed by TA Associates since 2024, while L Catterton took a stake in Saint Bella to build a global family-care platform out of China. Balance Point injected capital into The Edge in connection with Serent Capital's acquisition of the jewelry retail software provider, and Sunstone Partners backed Peloton Consulting Group, which helps modernize operations across retail, CPG, manufacturing and financial services. Good Springs invested in Snyder Environmental Services, serving public and private water, stormwater and wastewater markets, while Main Capital put money into Agenium, a cloud-based no-code platform for life and supplemental health insurers.

Infrastructure & Energy

A major cross-border platform emerged as BlackRock's GIP teamed with Temasek and Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund L'IMAN to launch a $30bn infrastructure partnership targeting Gulf and Central Asia investments alongside ADNOC. In energy, Houlihan Lokey's JP Hanson flagged $30bn of oil and gas assets coming to market, with insight on how the Iran War situation is impacting upstream M&A. Mubadala's Zouhir Regragui said supply-demand imbalances are driving capital allocation decisions, with insulation from AI disruption a top priority when evaluating assets.

European Buyout Activity

European private equity saw a wave of transactions. Verdane completed its acquisition of Augmentum Fintech, taking the European fintech specialist private following LSE delisting, and EQT launched a tender offer to take Japan's Kakaku.com private at JPY 3,000 per share. American Securities sold processing equipment provider CPM to Rosebank for $2.1bn, Lone Star completed its acquisition of DOMO Engineered Materials, and Gen Nx360 sold Precision Aviation Group to VSE for over $2bn. KKR exited a 213-unit Danish residential portfolio to Pears Global Real Estate, while Mutares sold Relobus, one of Poland's largest private bus operators, to Infracapital.

Secondaries & Market Dynamics

The secondaries market showed mixed signals. CV pricing climbed as rising buyside demand and greater emphasis on asset selection reduced the percentage of continuation vehicles priced in the lower range, though deal volume remained low in Q1 even as overall value rose. HarbourVest noted software secondaries are getting harder to close as uncertainty puts a dent in otherwise burgeoning volumes, with some software businesses poised to strengthen on AI innovation while others risk becoming obsolete. Meanwhile, Lazard's acquisition of Campbell Lutyens underscores that scale matters in the advisory business, with the tie-up creating a stronger combined platform.

Conference Circuit

The European PE conference calendar is taking shape. Italy's largest private equity conference returns to Milan next May, France's flagship event goes to Paris next March, and the Nordics' conference returns to Stockholm this November. Iberia's largest PE conference is set for Madrid this October, while Switzerland's conference returns to Zurich this June.

IPOs & Exits

Public market activity included Cerebras shares soaring in their Nasdaq debut after years of heavy private-market fundraising, generating billions for early backer Benchmark. KKR-backed Global Medical Response raised $479m in a scaled-back New York listing at a $3.3bn valuation, well below original expectations, while PE-backed GMR went public and Advent filed INNIO Group for a Nasdaq IPO targeting data centre power demand. In Italy, Green Arrow Capital completed its acquisition of DeA Capital, creating the country's largest alternative investment manager with €8bn in assets under management.