European buyout firms are acquiring companies for the lowest valuations in two years, according to the latest research, as they seek to take advantage of the eurozone crisis by buying assets on the cheap.

In the first half of 2012, mid-market leveraged buyout valuations fell by 14.3% compared with the second half of 2011, according to data from Epsilon Research and Argos Soditic, a French mid-market buyout firm.