EUROPE - EVCA reports 2005 a record year for private equity

EVCA has announced the final fundraising, investment and divestment figures for European private equity in 2005 at its annual Symposium in Monte-Carlo. The annual figures show records for all three stages of activity in the industry. After three years of fundraising lagging investment, fundraising in 2005 reached EUR 72bn, a record for the industry in Europe and over two and a half times the EUR 27.5bn raised in 2004. Pension funds took the lead as the main source of capital in 2005, representing 24.8% of the total funds raised, overtaking banks by EUR 5 bn for the first time since 2001. UK-based General Partners led the fund raising market in 2005, with 63.6% of the total. The UK was followed by France (16%) and Germany (4%).