Key Takeaways
- • Global buyout deal value rose 44% to $904 billion in 2025 and exit value rose 47% to $717 billion, according to Bain's Global Private Equity Report 2026, yet distributions remain below 15% of net asset value for a fourth consecutive year.
- • Roughly 32,000 unsold portfolio companies worth about $3.8 trillion remain held globally, and average holding periods at exit have reached around seven years versus five to six years in the prior decade.
- • Thirteen transactions above $10 billion accounted for 69% of 2025 deal value growth, while overall deal count fell 6% year over year.
- • Buyout fundraising declined 16% in 2025 even as total alternatives fundraising held roughly flat at about $1.3 trillion, with LPs favoring repeatable strategies and consistent distributions.
- • Continuation vehicles and secondaries still account for less than 10% of total exit value, per Bain, leaving liquidity constraints as a defining theme heading into 2026.
Summary
Private equity entered 2026 with improved momentum after a year of larger deals and rising exits, but Bain's Global Private Equity Report 2026 identifies liquidity as the industry's central pressure point. Global buyout deal value climbed 44% to $904 billion in 2025, while exit value rose 47% to $717 billion, supported by large public-to-private transactions and a pickup in corporate M&A. Bain characterizes the environment as a more mature phase shaped by higher interest rates, elevated asset prices and a growing emphasis on operational execution.
Cash returns to limited partners, however, remain constrained. Distributions as a percentage of net asset value have stayed below 15% for four consecutive years, and roughly 32,000 portfolio companies worth about $3.8 trillion remain unsold globally. Average holding periods at exit have extended to around seven years, compared with five to six years for much of the prior decade. Bain notes that internal rates of return tend to flatten or decline as assets remain in portfolios longer, increasing the importance of operational performance. LPs, according to Bain, often rely on distributions from existing investments to fund new commitments, a dynamic that is reshaping fundraising.
Deal activity has also become more concentrated. Thirteen transactions valued above $10 billion accounted for 69% of the growth in deal value during 2025, while overall deal count declined 6%. Bain said sovereign wealth funds and strategic corporate investors played an important role in these megadeals. Researchers highlight faster EBITDA growth as central to value creation, summarized as "12 is the new 5," though the report's framing contrasts with long-standing skepticism of EBITDA from Warren Buffett and the late Charlie Munger regarding its treatment of depreciation, capital spending and financing costs.
On exits, strategic sales grew 66% globally, while IPOs remained a smaller share despite improving public equity markets. Continuation vehicles and secondary transactions continued to expand but account for less than 10% of total exit value, per Bain. Global alternatives fundraising held roughly flat at about $1.3 trillion in 2025, while buyout fundraising fell 16%. LPs are prioritizing repeatable strategies, sector specialization and consistent distributions to paid-in capital. Bain said conditions heading into 2026 appear supportive, citing gradually lower interest rates, active deal pipelines and steady corporate acquisition demand, and most GPs surveyed expect exit momentum to continue.
Cash returns to limited partners, however, remain constrained. Distributions as a percentage of net asset value have stayed below 15% for four consecutive years, and roughly 32,000 portfolio companies worth about $3.8 trillion remain unsold globally. Average holding periods at exit have extended to around seven years, compared with five to six years for much of the prior decade. Bain notes that internal rates of return tend to flatten or decline as assets remain in portfolios longer, increasing the importance of operational performance. LPs, according to Bain, often rely on distributions from existing investments to fund new commitments, a dynamic that is reshaping fundraising.
Deal activity has also become more concentrated. Thirteen transactions valued above $10 billion accounted for 69% of the growth in deal value during 2025, while overall deal count declined 6%. Bain said sovereign wealth funds and strategic corporate investors played an important role in these megadeals. Researchers highlight faster EBITDA growth as central to value creation, summarized as "12 is the new 5," though the report's framing contrasts with long-standing skepticism of EBITDA from Warren Buffett and the late Charlie Munger regarding its treatment of depreciation, capital spending and financing costs.
On exits, strategic sales grew 66% globally, while IPOs remained a smaller share despite improving public equity markets. Continuation vehicles and secondary transactions continued to expand but account for less than 10% of total exit value, per Bain. Global alternatives fundraising held roughly flat at about $1.3 trillion in 2025, while buyout fundraising fell 16%. LPs are prioritizing repeatable strategies, sector specialization and consistent distributions to paid-in capital. Bain said conditions heading into 2026 appear supportive, citing gradually lower interest rates, active deal pipelines and steady corporate acquisition demand, and most GPs surveyed expect exit momentum to continue.
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