Private Equity 3 Days

Last updated: August 13, 2026, 5:41 AM ET

Private Equity Main Street

Global private equity deal flow saw its worst Q2 since 2020, with the TMT sector registering the steepest year-over-year decline in transaction volume. Despite the broader slowdown, a flurry of high‑value transactions closed this week. Apollo Sports Capital invested $2.6bn in Yankee Global Enterprises, the parent company of the New York Yankees, with proceeds earmarked for franchise growth and debt refinancing. Bernhard Capital agreed to take infrastructure consulting firm Bowman Consulting Group private in a $1bn deal that includes a 35‑day “go‑shop” period. Goldman Sachs moved to acquire ETF provider Neos Investments for $2.25bn, a firm managing $30bn in assets across 19 options‑based income vehicles. Thoma Bravo completed its $466m take‑private of Irish validation software firm Kneat, which has been delisted from the Toronto Stock Exchange. A landmark take‑private bid emerged as Apollo landed a £5.7bn recommended offer for easyJet, in what would be one of the largest European public‑to‑private transactions.

Fundraising and Capital Formation

Brookfield Asset Management gathered a record $77bn in the second quarter, drawing heavily on its private equity, infrastructure, and credit franchises. Step Stone surpassed $20bn in private wealth AUM, with its venture‑heavy SPRING vehicle attracting nearly $1.7bn in subscriptions in the quarter alone. Accel raised $800m for its ninth early‑stage Europe fund, while separately closing an oversubscribed $550m India fund within weeks, even as more than 55% of its previous $650m India vehicle remains undeployed. In the institutional space, Korea’s Employment Insurance Fund is seeking to commit 120bn Korean won to blind‑pool PE and VC vehicles for 2026. The Plymouth County Retirement Association issued an RFP for a North American PE manager.

Secondaries and Continuation Vehicles

Secondary market activity is accelerating across strategies. Exponent closed a single‑asset continuation vehicle of approximately $867m for H&MV Engineering, tapping capital from Apollo, Pantheon, and SQ Capital. Monogram completed a continuation fund for beverage company Mountaintop, with Apollo S3 as the lead investor. Tail‑end specialist Hollyport Partners sold a 25% stake to Blue Owl, while maintaining operational independence. However, US investors are raising questions over credit secondaries valuations, with executives from a New York pension fund and a Dallas‑based multifamily office voicing concerns during a PEI Group webinar. Meanwhile, Ardian co‑CEO Mark Benedetti identified the most mispricing opportunities in European assets and secondaries.

Healthcare and Life Sciences

Astorg completed its buyout of Thermo Fisher’s microbiology business, signaling ongoing appetite for life science carve‑outs. Mountaingate exited its investment in healthcare commercialization platform Relevate, having first partnered with the firm in 2020. In medical staffing, PE‑backed CHG Healthcare acquired Krewe Anesthesia. Gridiron Capital invested in van den Boom & Associates, a provider of back‑office solutions for the life sciences sector. Marlin Equity saw its portfolio company Radar Healthcare complete the acquisition of Cemplicity, a patient experience and patient‑reported outcomes platform active in Australia, New Zealand, the Middle East and the UK. A broader medical education gap is proving a tailwind for PE investors, as the pressing need for more healthcare professionals globally creates investment opportunities.

Technology and AI

Thrive Holdings, backed by OpenAI, raised $2bn in new funding at a $12bn valuation from investors including SoftBank, D1 Capital Partners, and Altimeter Capital. Index Ventures is in talks to lead a $500m round for a new AI lab founded by a DeepMind researcher. Multiverse Computing is nearing a $500m Series C as the Spanish startup vies to become Europe’s next AI champion. Wall Street’s largest private capital houses — Apollo, Blackstone, Brookfield, and KKR — have lined up behind NVIDIA in a $500bn move to make compute an investable asset class. Harbour Vest revealed its deployment strategy for its $4.75bn flagship co‑investment fund, targeting AI and healthcare innovation. KKR took a strategic equity stake in Crowe Advisory, the tax and advisory arm of the global accounting firm. A deep dive into the venture lab building deeptech to save the planet highlights the growing focus on hard‑tech climate solutions. Deeptech founders are increasingly dictating term sheets in 2026.

Infrastructure, Industrials, and Energy

New Mountain Capital agreed to acquire fire safety provider Jensen Hughes from Gryphon. Alro Steel, a metals distributor founded in 1948, landed a majority investment from Lindsay Goldberg, with the Glick family retaining a significant stake. One Rock Capital agreed to sell environmental services firm Enviro Serve to Clean Harbors for $470m. HIG Capital completed its acquisition of UK engineering firm Phoenix ME, which provides mechanical and electrical services to blue‑chip clients. Amberjack Capital closed the carve‑out of Flowserve’s PMV Automation group. THL Partners invested in pavement maintenance firm Pave Masters. Private equity is also increasingly active in the European HVAC market, with rising temperatures driving demand for climate‑control services. Solar energy continues to draw PE interest, while Providence agreed to sell live entertainment business ATG, which operates 70 venues globally.

Consumer, Beverage, and Business Services

PE firms are making deals in both consumer brands and manufacturing in the beverage sector, with Bain, Platinum Equity, and Monogram leading recent transactions. West Bridge agreed to acquire a majority stake in Beckett Investment Management, an English financial planning firm, from Foresight Group. Beckett has grown its assets under management from £800m to £2.1bn since 2021. Capitol Services, backed by Clearview Capital, acquired corporate services provider Wolz. Baymark acquired healthy meal prep and delivery company Meal Prep Sunday, marking its 66th acquisition. Quad‑C invested in Paradigm, an occupational safety and health platform formed through the combination of Code Red Safety, Concept Controls, and Haz Tek. Trinity Hunt backed management consulting firm Fisher Management Partners.

Credit Markets and CLOs

CVC Credit priced Apidos LVIII, a new $550m collateralized loan obligation, extending a busy year of issuance for the credit arm of buyout group CVC. TDR Capital is exploring a sale of Arrow Global, the British private credit manager it took private five years ago, signaling growing exit activity in the credit space.

Venture Capital and Startup Ecosystem

Global new unicorn counts in the first half of 2026 have already surpassed 2025’s totals, with 195 companies joining the Crunchbase Unicorn Board. Lovable raised $400m at a $13.3bn valuation, backed by the EU’s Scaleup Fund. Drone startup Uforce is targeting upwards of a $4bn valuation in a new funding round. Clear Jet, an AI‑enabled logistics startup connecting shippers with unused cargo capacity on commercial flights, raised a $25m Edison Partners‑led Series B. Monashees, one of Latin America’s oldest VC firms, is crossing into Silicon Valley with a new San Francisco office. A trio of ex‑Local Globe partners is plotting a new VC firm. Fitness startup funding is rebounding, totaling more than $3.6bn in the first half of 2026, with investors prioritizing AI and data over treadmills.

Pension Funds and LP Perspectives

The Los Angeles Fire and Police Pension System, a $38bn system, is reaffirming its conviction in the lower mid‑market and emerging managers, with its head of PE believing the portfolio’s distributions have fared well in a difficult period. A former APG private equity veteran offered insights on how pensions can better assess performance, arguing that internal asset class evaluations and specific goal assessments are key. CPP Investments is committing approximately $143m for a 49.5% interest in two Hilton hotels in Brazil, partnering with HSI. Side Letter notes that continuation fund activity is outstripping traditional secondaries activity. Meanwhile, valuations face scrutiny from the SEC. A wave of major AI IPOs could return significant liquidity to LPs, potentially fueling a new venture fundraising cycle.