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Events Awards
Celebrating excellence in a changing market
by Kezia Kho, Samuel Kerr and Marie-Laure Keyrouz, Mergermarket
The Mergermarket European Private Equity Awards recognised the firms and dealmakers demonstrating resilience, innovation and outstanding performance in a challenging year
Periods of uncertainty have a way of rewarding the managers that continue to differentiate themselves from the pack. The Mergermarket European Private Equity Awards, held at The Brewery in London, honoured dealmakers who operated in a period marked by higher rates, cautious buyers and a still-fragile exit environment.
Fundraising remains challenging
Well into 2026, European private equity is still grappling with a difficult fundraising environment amid a mounting backlog of unrealised investments. European private equity pulled in EUR 107bn across 96 funds in the first three quarters of 2026, a sharp drop from EUR 167bn across 112 funds during same period a year earlier, according to Mergermarket data.
However, it is not all doom and gloom. Mergermarket data point to a revival in European sponsor exits in 2026, with exit value rising 27% year-on-year to EUR 171.6bn between January and September.
That said, European large-cap private equity exits in 2026 have largely been dominated by corporate acquirers. Higher financing costs, reduced leverage availability, and valuation expectations that have yet to fully adjust, continue to weigh on sponsor-led acquisitions. Strategic acquirers can justify higher valuations through operational synergies and are often less dependent on debt financing, giving them an advantage in competitive processes. An illustration of this new paradigm was Advent and Cinven’s
EUR 29.4bn sale of TK Elevator to Kone.
Finding alternative exit routes
Sponsors are becoming increasingly creative in how they approach exits. While Europe’s IPO market remains subdued, secondary equity capital markets have proved remarkably deep. PE firms are becoming more willing to accept shares as consideration in M&A transactions, looking to monetise positions through block trades rather than pursuing an IPO.
Continuation vehicles also now account for almost 30% of sponsor exits, according to estimates from market participants, as GPs come under growing pressure to generate liquidity to investors.
Software and tech has become a more challenging area as valuations have been impacted by the so-called SaaSpocalypse. In the first half of the year alone, global sponsor-backed software exits fell 69% year-on-year to USD 102bn, while software buyout activity declined 54% to USD 52bn.
Defence becomes a priority
By contrast, defence has emerged as an increasingly important theme. This year has seen the launch of defence specialist strategies from established managers like Warburg Pincus to emerging names such as DTCP, while heavyweight institutional investors including Germany’s MEAG, Denmark’s EIFO, and the UK’s British Business Bank and National Wealth Fund have all signalled an intention to increase their exposure to the sector.
Triton’s exit of defence supplier RENK via the Frankfurt Stock Exchange is an example. The deal valued RENK at EUR 1.5bn and realised a 7x MOIC. This year also saw the world’s largest defence IPO in history, with industrial and defence group Czechoslovak Group raising EUR 3.8bn.
More broadly, investor interest continues to broaden into real-economy sectors, including industrials, manufacturing and business services, where investors can rely on operational value creation, rather than multiples expansion as a key driver of returns.