Private Equity 3 Days

Last updated: August 3, 2026, 8:30 AM ET

Private Equity Dealmaking and Fundraisings

KKR is deploying insurance capital into a €1.8 billion renewables portfolio, agreeing to acquire a 50% stake in a 1.2 GW portfolio of onshore solar and wind assets across Europe from Total Energies. Permira is taking a partial exit from its seven-year investment in sustainable fashion brand Reformation, which raised $210.9 million in an IPO priced at the bottom of its marketed range. Sterling Group sold its manufacturer Tangent Technologies to Platinum Equity. Enterprise-backed Meritus has acquired industrial gases distributor Metroplex Welding Supply. Platinum Equity also invested in lighting company LMPG, with the founder and management team rolling their equity to remain significant investors.

Cortec is preparing to launch a sale process for A1 Garage Door Service, which has completed at least 17 add-on acquisitions since Cortec's initial investment in 2019. Easyjet extended the PUSU deadline for Castlelake, one of the private equity firms pursuing the company, to align with Apollo's deadline of August 7. Goldman Sachs and Health Wave are targeting the senior care sector, driven by supply and demand gaps creating dealmaking opportunities. Apax is leveraging sustainability trends to support a €1.5 billion medical packaging deal.

Venture Capital and AI Investments

Menlo Ventures' Murphy indicated that artificial intelligence is pushing the firm toward larger deals, with the firm having $3 billion in new capital to deploy and insights from its relationship with Anthropic. Index Ventures doubled down on AI with a fresh $2 billion fundraise. June, a startup backed by Marc Benioff, has emerged from stealth with a $20 million pre-seed round aimed at simplifying AI adoption. Smallest.ai has raised $13 million to build ultra-fast voice AI designed to pass the Turing test for AI phone calls.

largest funding round of the week was a reported $5 billion Nvidia-backed financing for foundational AI unicorn Safe Superintelligence, followed by a $1 billion investment in Commonwealth Fusion. VC-backed startups committing more fraud, with research from Imperial College and Emlyon Business School identifying how founders commit fraud and the role investors play. Europe has begun enforcing AI Act rules. The concept of "neolabs" and how they will generate revenue remains a significant question.

Investor Intentions and Alternative Assets

New York State Teachers' Retirement System (NYSTRS) is setting its private equity pacing for fiscal year 2027, seeking to commit up to $2.7 billion to the asset class. PE Club by Nicolas Paulmier, is transforming former private equity executives' networks into an LP platform, attracting LPs such as serial entrepreneurs and ex-CEOs. Industry participants are outlining potential use cases, investment horizons, fee models, and likely adopters for Hong Kong's new listed alternative investment trusts. James Dacombe's has raised capital at a $3.3 billion valuation.

Emerging Trends and Notable Figures

Popular themes for seed-stage investment this year include cancer therapeutics and space tech, with seed rounds of $5 million to $10 million clustering in these sectors. Capitol Meridian has appointed Maisha Glover as an operating partner, having previously served as a partner at McKinsey & Company. Sifted has identified 13 technical founders across Europe to watch, according to venture capitalists.