Last updated: August 19, 2026, 11:32 PM ET
Private Equity
KKR has agreed to acquire a minority stake in BookMyShow, one of India's leading ticketing and live entertainment platforms, betting on the country's booming live events market. The deal underscores the growing appetite among global buyout firms for consumer-facing assets in high-growth emerging markets. Meanwhile, KKR has offered to acquire UGI, the US natural gas and electricity distributor, for $9bn, leveraging its infrastructure expertise in a data centre-driven power play.
Blackstone recently committed $2.6bn through its sports platform to the owner of the New York Yankees, reflecting continued momentum in sports investing. Brookfield successfully landed Reliance Worldwide in an all-cash proposal valued at about A$4.1bn ($2.9bn), marking a significant cross-border acquisition in the plumbing products sector. EQT entered the sports arena by purchasing a majority stake in Australia's Melbourne Storm, valuing the rugby league club at A$150m ($106m).
Francisco Partners agreed to take Weave, a health tech firm, private for $650m, targeting small and medium-sized healthcare businesses. Veritas Capital exited Certified Group, the North American laboratory testing business it had backed, through a sale to food safety specialist Mérieux NutriSciences. Veritas also agreed to sell Epiq, a specialized radio technology firm, to TTM Technologies for $1.1bn, closing out a four-year hold.
General Atlantic has reengaged banks including JPMorgan, and Morgan Stanley to lead a potential initial public offering, reviving a listing effort that has been years in the making. Ardian is weighing a sale of Swissbit, the Swiss maker of industrial data storage and security hardware, which could fetch a multibillion-dollar valuation. EQT is considering a sale of its two English-language education businesses in Vietnam, in a potential exit that could value the assets at about $500m.
Stone Point and Genstar are each investing new capital and will hold equal stakes in Ascensus, a fintech firm. Genstar also struck a deal for the exit of Oncourse Home Solutions from Apax, expanding warranty coverage for over two million customers across 48 states.
Risepoint, backed by Vistria, acquired the North American operations of Keypath, a healthcare edtech firm supported by Sterling Partners. Turnspire snapped up Hulcher, a rail services provider with 28 service centers across the US and Mexico, serving all six North American Class I railroads. Turnspire Capital Partners completed the acquisition of Hulcher, which operates a fleet of more than 3,000 specialized units.
TJC is set to launch a sale of Dental365 in 2027, with the dental practice potentially fetching a valuation based on $75m–$100m of EBITDA generated over the last year. Blackford Capital added a fire safety integrator to its platform in a second add-on acquisition, targeting commercial, institutional, and government clients across the West.
Baird Capital exited Cleanwater1 in a sale to Veralto, which supplies water and wastewater quality management technologies. Oakley played in the AI accuracy drive with a Graphwise acquisition, while CataCap acquired a majority stake in B4Restore, a Danish provider of data protection services.
Oakley Capital struck a deal for a majority stake in Graphwise, an AI platform serving over 200 blue-chip customers with knowledge graph and semantic layer technology. CataCap also completed its acquisition of B4Restore, founded in 2003 and providing backup, storage, and business continuity services from Danish data centers.
Hg agreed a growth investment in Nourish Care, a UK-based software provider helping care teams plan and coordinate support for residential and home care settings, with Livingbridge retaining a minority stake. PSG invested in XBE, a construction software provider, with founder and CEO Sean Devine and Banneker Partners retaining significant ownership positions.
Stellex-backed Crest scooped up Dukane, a manufacturer, expanding its industrial technology footprint. Agellus-backed Bluejack snapped up Phillips Fire & Life Safety, a Houston-based national service provider of fire and life safety services. New Heritage Capital invested in Carepoint Pharmacy to support growth in its 50-state pharmacy dispensing and patient access support platform.
River Associates acquired Diamond Wipes, a personal care products manufacturer serving brands, retailers, and distributors across North America. Salt Creek Capital sealed the acquisition of Craig Wire Products, a Georgia-based manufacturer of custom-specification shaped magnet wire for electric motor, generator, and transformer OEMs. Salt Creek Capital also completed the acquisition of Craig Wire Products, reinforcing its position in specialty wire manufacturing.
Exponent agreed an investment in OFS, an Ireland-based provider of specialist technical services for the global power generation industry, supplying engineers and technicians across more than 40 countries. Exponent also invested in OFS as part of its broader energy generation services strategy.
THL agreed to acquire Queue-It from GRO Capital, marking its second investment out of THL Automation Fund II amid growing demand for agentic commerce solutions. Columna completed a strategic exit from the Swiss dental group Ardentis, selling its majority stake to Medbase. THL also moved to acquire Queue-It from GRO Capital, capitalizing on the rise of agentic commerce platforms.
Midas Atlantic and Najafi signed a deal for the power and battery unit of Panasonic, which supplies power and battery control components for industrial and automotive customers across Germany and Slovakia. Lone Star completed the sale of Vigor Marine Group to Antin Infrastructure Partners, further consolidating the maritime services sector.
GenNx360’s NVI completed the add-on acquisition of Barracuda Specialty Services, a Louisiana-based provider of magnetic particle testing and phased array ultrasonic testing services to petrochemical, midstream, and industrial clients. Shore Capital’s Guidant Power acquired Dyna Scan, a Cincinnati-based specialist in infrared electrical inspections for healthcare facilities and hospital systems nationwide, strengthening its presence in the healthcare infrared diagnostics market.
Trustar Capital agreed to acquire Lingxi Games, the gaming arm of Alibaba, in a transaction that may value the studio at more than $1.5bn, representing one of the largest carve-outs in the Chinese gaming sector. INVL backed a €200m fish processing merger in the Baltics, acquiring Lithuanian fish processors Nordian Group and Norvelita, combining them into one of the largest players in the regional seafood processing industry.
Partners Group landed a $1bn Asia private credit mandate from a major institutional investor, reflecting deepening allocations to private credit strategies across the region. Ares Management took control of Toob, a loss-making UK fibre broadband operator backed by the government’s National Wealth Fund, through a debt-for-equity restructuring aimed at stabilizing the business.
Clearlake co-founder José E. Feliciano and his wife won a record $3.9bn sale of the San Diego Padres, with Major League Baseball owners unanimously approving the transaction. FSG sold a significant minority stake in Liverpool FC to 1892 Holdings, a consortium led by Amit Bhatia and backed by Jeff Bezos and Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, at a record $7bn valuation. Apollo put $2.6bn into the New York Yankees owner through its sports platform, continuing its aggressive expansion into sports and entertainment assets.
Venture Capital
Travis Kalanick kicked off another round of VC bashing, stating that only 1% of venture capitalists are helpful, following his $1.7bn fundraising for his new robotics company Atoms. Rillet raised $100m in a Series C round at a $1bn valuation, becoming a unicorn just two years after emerging from stealth, led by Iconiq after doubling its ARR in three months.
Reach Capital closed an oversubscribed $265m Fund V to back AI founders building tools to expand human potential, signaling strong LP confidence in the AI-driven education and workforce development space. Nik Storonsky’s VC firm, Quantum Light, closed $500m for its second fund, targeting early-stage fintech and enterprise software startups across Europe. Gravis Robotics hit a $1bn valuation with a $200m investment from SoftBank, underscoring investor enthusiasm for robotics and automation technologies.
VCs poured billions into physical AI as the next wave of AI investing took shape, with global venture funding in the space totaling $47.4bn across 521 deals in the first half of 2026. Semiconductor giants have been busy backing startups this year, deploying record sums into artificial intelligence and robotics ventures as massive AI spending boosts their earnings and valuations. Francisco Partners’ DJ Deb outlined a "complexity arbitrage" strategy, while Goldman Sachs, and FTV Capital made strategic bets on fintech platforms navigating the evolving digital economy.
Andreessen Horowitz found itself under scrutiny from the DOJ over its board seat arrangements, a development that has baffled many in the VC community who view such conflicts as unavoidable given the dynamic nature of portfolio companies. University of California sold $1bn of private equity stakes to HarbourVest at a discount, marking one of the largest secondary transactions in recent months and highlighting ongoing LP portfolio restructurings.
Secondaries & Fund Finance
ICG backed Onex’s Ryan again in a complex continuation fund process, marking the third year since Onex first moved the tax services provider into a single-asset vehicle. UBS strengthened its EMEA secondaries advisory team by hiring from DC Advisory, reuniting a director with former colleague Michael Wieczorek.
Hollyport led a €160m continuation vehicle for Talentech, a recruitment software platform that had previously been moved into a multi-asset vehicle by joint owner Verdane. Ardian’s Mark Benedetti highlighted infrastructure secondaries as a mispricing bright spot within private markets, noting that while more capital is entering the space, much of it is being deployed by relatively new entrants.
Novo Holdings is expanding its presence in Asia by building a roster of homegrown GPs and growing its regional headcount, according to managing partner Amit Kakar, who emphasized the firm's vision for Asian continuation funds. Novo Holdings’ Asia head discussed the firm’s strategy for continuation funds in the region, including a recent private equity continuation fund investment alongside KKR.
Strategic Moves & Market Trends
MassPRIM shifted its focus to smaller buyouts amid ongoing underperformance in the private equity sector, citing limited exposure to AI-related sectors as a drag on returns. SEMA committed 460bn Korean won to domestic blind-pool private equity and venture capital funds for 2026, aiming to strengthen domestic investment pipelines. Quincy Retirement System issued a request for proposal for a private equity manager, signaling renewed interest in allocating to professional fund managers.
BNPP AM Prime’s Pascal Christory warned that there won’t be enough capital for everybody in the European GP stakes market, citing concentration at the top of the fundraising charts as a key driver of demand. INVL backed a €200m fish processing merger in the Baltics, reflecting renewed interest in niche industrial consolidations across emerging European markets.
Thoma Bravo weighed concessions as Sophos turned to existing lenders for $2bn refinancing, after attempts to secure private credit backing fell through, highlighting challenges in the leveraged buyout financing landscape. Great Hill tapped Sam Liu as director of AI for its growth team, signaling a strategic push to integrate artificial intelligence capabilities into its investment process and portfolio company operations.
Sports & Media
KKR bet on India's live entertainment boom by acquiring a minority stake in BookMyShow, positioning itself to capitalize on the rapid growth of ticketed events and digital entertainment consumption in South Asia. EQT entered the sports franchise market with a majority stake in Melbourne Storm, valuing the Australian rugby league club at A$150m ($106m) and expanding its footprint in global sports investing.
Fenway Sports Group sold a significant minority stake in Liverpool FC to 1892 Holdings, a consortium led by Amit Bhatia and backed by Jeff Bezos and Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, at a record $7bn valuation, marking one of the highest-valued sports franchise transactions in history. Apollo put $2.6bn into the New York Yankees owner through its sports platform, reinforcing its position as a major player in the convergence of private equity and professional sports.
Cross-Sector Developments
CVC took an approximately 9% stake in Silicon2, the global distributor at the centre of K-beauty's export boom, in a deal valuing the South Korean company at about $2.1bn and reflecting sustained momentum in Asian beauty and lifestyle brands. BGF exited bf1systems to Lagercrantz, a Norfolk-based motorsport technology firm that has grown revenue to £17.8m and counts McLaren, Lamborghini, and Porsche among its clients.
Rockbridge agreed to sell CheckedUp, a healthcare media firm, to Providence Equity, with Varsity Healthcare Partners joining as a strategic minority investor alongside the existing management team. Columna Capital exited Ardentis, an integrated group of dental clinics in Western Switzerland, to Medbase in a strategic healthcare consolidation play.
Fundraising & LP Activity
University of California sold $1bn of private equity stakes to HarbourVest at a discount, marking one of the largest secondary transactions in recent months and highlighting ongoing LP portfolio restructurings. Partners Group landed a $1bn Asia private credit mandate from a major institutional investor, reflecting deepening allocations to private credit strategies across the region. Reach Capital closed an oversubscribed $265m Fund V to back AI founders building tools to expand human potential, signaling strong LP confidence in the AI-driven education and workforce development space.
Quantum Light, Nik Storonsky’s VC firm, closed $500m for its second fund, targeting early-stage fintech and enterprise software startups across Europe. SoftBank invested $200m in Gravis Robotics, helping the robotics company reach a $1bn valuation and underscoring investor enthusiasm for automation technologies. INVL backed a €200m fish processing merger in the Baltics, acquiring Nordian Group and Norvelita to create one of the largest players in the regional seafood processing industry.