Generalist private equity funds, or funds which invest in companies across all stages of their development, performed significantly worse than the overall private equity market in the UK in 2000, according to the British Venture Capital Association (BVCA).

Generalist funds racked up returns of 13.6% in 2000, compared with an industry average of 25.6%. The rate of return for generalist funds in 2000 was also sharply lower than their average returns over three, five, and ten years, which stood at 42.9%, 34%, and 20.9%, respectively.