Value hits decade-low in final quarter

18 months on from the onset of the credit crunch the outlook for European private equity remains grey and overcast, with Q4 2008 recording the lowest value total in over a decade following a 59% slide, according to the latest figures released in the unquote" Private Equity Barometer, published in association with Candover.

In terms of final year totals, the 2008 figure of EUR87bn was down 59% against 2007's record EUR198bn. The declines, though, were less severe in terms of volume, which perhaps provides a more accurate reflection of sentiment given that it is not skewed by a small number of mega-deals. Although Q4 did see a substantial slowdown of around 32%, 2008 overall was just 14% down and remained ahead of the number recorded in 2006.

For the second time since Q4 2007 there were no deals in the largest buyout value bracket (>EUR1.65bn), while the mid-market range (EUR160m-1.65bn) saw a fifth consecutive quarterly decline from EUR9.3bn to slightly more than EUR4bn. The erstwhile smaller value range (

The Benelux region, already the most inactive buyout market in Europe, saw a further drop from the already modest nine deals in Q3 to just five, while volume fell substantially by 85% from EUR1.2bn to EUR190m.

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• Topics
• Performance
• Benelux