Private Equity 8 Hours

Last updated: August 10, 2026, 2:42 PM ET

Mega Deals & Fundraising

Apollo landed a £5.7bn recommended offer for easy Jet, marking a landmark European take-private. Brookfield gathered a record $77bn in the second quarter, drawing on its private equity, infrastructure and credit franchises. I Squared Capital agreed to buy Ooh Media for $631m, adding more than 30,000 digital and static out-of-home advertising assets across Australia and New Zealand. StepStone exceeded $20bn in private wealth AUM, with its venture and growth-focused SPRING vehicle attracting nearly $1.7bn in quarterly subscriptions.

Take-Private & Strategic Investments

Bernhard Capital agreed to take Bowman Consulting private for $1bn, granting a 35-day go-shop period to solicit alternative proposals. KKR closed a strategic equity investment in Crowe Advisory, the tax and advisory arm of the global accounting network. New Mountain Capital acquired fire safety provider Jensen Hughes from Gryphon, adding mission-critical, compliance-driven engineering services. CPP Investments committed $143m for a 49.5% stake in two landmark Hilton hotels in Brazil, partnering with HSI. VSS closed a minority stake in Cordoba, with principal Sai Parepally stating that AI cannot displace the need for physical infrastructure.

Dealflow Trends & Outlook

Private equity dealflow suffered its worst second quarter since 2020, with the TMT sector seeing the biggest drop in deal count relative to last year. The quarter's slump echoed the macro turbulence that weighed on dealmaking in early 2025. Meanwhile, continuation funds are outstripping traditional secondaries activity, and new ESG rules could chill private markets. On a brighter note, global unicorn creation soared to 195 new companies in the first half of 2026, already surpassing 2025’s full-year total. A wave of AI IPOs could return significant liquidity to limited partners, potentially fueling a new venture fundraising cycle.

Regionals & Regulatory

Provectus Capital made its Romanian debut by acquiring a majority stake in Seatbelt Consulting, the country’s largest provider of occupational health and safety services. Korea’s Employment Insurance Fund plans to commit 120bn won to blind-pool private equity and venture capital funds for 2026. Revolut secured a French banking licence, a move that could reshape fintech competition and oversight in Europe.