PE’s share of M&A at a high point

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Private equity’s share of overall M&A is trending toward a record high, according to PitchBook’s Q3 2023 Global M&A Report. Through Q3, PE is accounting for 42% of all global M&A, about a percentage point higher than the record. Even if it falls short, the last three years are going to be around the 40% mark. The data indicates that this is a post-COVID phenomenon, since pre-COVID years were 35% or less, or much less. As recently as 2015, PE accounted for 25% of all M&A, equating to an almost 20 percentage point swing compared to 2023. Even in a down year for private equity, we’re still in a window where PE is taking a historically big share of M&A.

(Past performance is no guarantee of future results.)