Private equity firms' investment across Europe, from early-stage to buyouts, has fallen dramatically from $13bn (€14.8bn) in the last quarter of 2000 to $5.5bn in the first quarter of 2001.

The numbers, from Thomson Financial's Venture Economics' first report on private equity investment activity, are in marked contrast to the more bullish figures generated by the Centre for Management Buy-Out Research (CMBOR).