Autumn renaissance

The leaves are falling; it's getting cold and dark and so is the Q3 unquote barometer. It shows European private equity has dropped almost 10% in deal volume and more importantly 35% in deal value to the lowest level since Q1 2004. The French market however has bucked the gloomy trends this month by recording its largest deal flow this year with small and mid-cap buyouts and expansion deals particularly prominent. Abenex Capital led the way on the buyout side and rounded up the Buffalo Grill deal this month, with the EUR300-350m purchase of the restaurant chain from Colony and Eurazeo being the biggest buyout deal. It was followed by Duke Street Capital who completed their EUR217m purchase of biotech company Groupe Biomnis