WPV, the €5bn pension fund for auditors and chartered accountants in North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany, is closely monitoring a rebound in private equity dealmaking as market activity shows signs of renewed strength.
The fund sees a “dynamic market environment” in private equity, with global M&A activity picking up and valuations returning to “very high levels”, chief investment officer Sascha Pinger told IPE.
Pinger pointed to intense competition, abundant capital and an increasing number of transactions in the technology sector as drivers of market momentum.
Global private equity dealmaking has reached $1.5trn so far this year, according to KPMG – putting 2025 on track for a four-year high if investment levels remain steady. This comes despite a fall in deal volumes.
In Europe, private equity exits in the financial services sector have hit an all-time high, supported by improving market conditions and pressure from limited partners (LPs) on general partners (GPs) to sell assets and generate liquidity, according to PitchBook.
Alternative exit options such as continuation vehicles are also gaining traction, Pinger noted, allowing managers to hold on to assets beyond the typical fund term to capture further value.
WPV allocates around 10% of its portfolio to private equity, 4% to private corporate debt and 8% to infrastructure.
On the equity side, the fund focuses on private equity, infrastructure and renewable energy, maintaining a balanced allocation across Europe and North America.
“Primary funds currently dominate the private equity asset class, while the infrastructure sector focuses on renewable energies, although digitalisation has caught up,” Pinger said.
Alternative investments, largely accessed through funds and WPV’s local network of industry experts, play a growing strategic role as uncertainty around interest rates persists.
“Infrastructure is therefore a central pillar of our alternative investment strategy,” Pinger said, citing predictable cash flows supported by trends in digitalisation, the energy transition and government funding programmes such as Germany’s €500bn Sondervermögen.
In private debt, WPV favours broadly diversified credit strategies and financing linked to infrastructure and real estate.
“The focus tends to be on senior secured strategies. This creates a stable earnings base while simultaneously broadly diversifying risk,” Pinger said.
However, the CIO added that WPV remains selective in private debt due to the asset class’s demands for rigorous quality and risk assessment.
“We pay particular attention to broad diversification and carefully structured investments,” he noted.
By contrast, other German pension funds for professionals are ramping up exposure to private debt.
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