The pipeline of UK private equity-backed buy-outs hoping to secure an exit has ballooned to a record £37bn (€53bn) according to research published today by the Centre for Management Buy-Out Research (CMBOR).

CMBOR has calculated the figure by taking the enterprise value of all UK buy-outs made between 1995 and the end of 2003, which have yet to make an exit, and multiplying by the average proportion of equity used to finance a buy-out, which it has taken as 40%.