Private equity groups globally are sitting on a record 28,000 unsold companies worth more than $3tn, as a sharp slowdown in dealmaking creates a crunch for investors looking to sell assets.
The numbers, revealed in consultancy firm Bain & Co’s annual private equity report, show how rapidly the industry has grown over the past decade, as well as the challenges it faces from higher interest rates that have increased financing costs.
“It may be another two to three years before the money starts to come back [to investors],” Hugh MacArthur, chair of Bain’s private equity practice, told the Financial Times. “It’s probably the number one concern in the marketplace right now.”