Private Equity 8 Hours

Last updated: May 15, 2026, 5:30 PM ET

Deal Activity & Capital Deployment Anduril secured $5bn financing in a week that spotlighted defense‑tech growth, while Kinderhook closed a take‑private of Enhabit Home Health & Hospice expanding its platform in senior‑care services. The two transactions illustrate private equity’s appetite for high‑margin, recession‑resilient sectors, with the Anduril round topping the market and Kinderhook’s acquisition expected to generate cost synergies across a fragmented home‑health landscape.

Cross‑Border Fund Management Shifts Schroders transferred its China fund unit to Neuberger Berman after concluding the exit from a wholly‑owned platform, a move that underscores the tightening regulatory environment for foreign managers in China. The deal, reported by Reuters, will see Neuberger inherit a suite of on‑shore products, positioning it to capture the still‑robust demand for domestic equity exposure as capital flows into the country’s A‑share market.

Mergers & Consolidation in Specialty Markets Charlesbank‑backed Tecomet merged with Orchid Orthopedic Solutions to form a unified orthopedics entity operating under the Tecomet name, creating a larger platform to pursue global expansion and product diversification. This consolidation follows a broader trend of niche medical‑device firms joining forces to achieve scale, improve R&D pipelines, and negotiate better pricing with hospital networks.

Funding Rounds in Emerging Technologies Destinus entered €200m funding talks as the Dutch drone maker seeks capital to accelerate its high‑altitude, long‑endurance aircraft program, signaling continued investor confidence in unmanned‑air systems despite macro‑uncertainty. Meanwhile, a jury dismissed a racial‑discrimination claim against Mercury Capital, removing a legal cloud that could have distracted the firm from pursuing further deals in its core middle‑market buyout strategy.

Sector Targeting by Large PE Firms Blackstone, Audax and Five Arrows explored life‑science consulting assets as drug‑R&D complexity drives demand for specialized advisory services, with Eir Partners already backing data‑analytics player Quartz Bio. The focus on pharma and life‑science consulting reflects private equity’s broader shift toward knowledge‑intensive businesses that can deliver recurring revenue and high barriers to entry, complementing traditional manufacturing and consumer‑focused investments.