The refinancing of private equity-backed deals has hit a record high, fuelled by the boom in Europe's leveraged finance market, according to latest industry figures.

The Centre for Management Buy-Out Research said £4.6bn (€6.5bn) ewas borrowed in the UK to restructure 50 buy-outs in the first nine months of the year, almost double the value of refinancing last year, when £2.5bn covered 53 deals.