Deal volume data and financing levels for private equity reveal a rocky first half this year. Yet buyout firms denied claims they were in trouble and repeated the mantra that the best investments are made during turbulent market conditions.
The value of buyout deals in Europe to the end of May was down 57% on the same time last year, to $43.3bn (â¬27.8m) across 356 deals, according to data provider Dealogic. This fall was largely due to the collapse in the leveraged loan market, with only $35.4bn lent in the year to June 23, down 84.9% on last year.
