Global private equity investment fell from $2.4trn (€2.1trn) to $2.3trn, and deal volumes dropped from 21,060 to 20,105, with the 12-month deal count falling to a twenty-one-quarter low, according to KPMG’s Q2’26 Pulse of Private Equity report. The mid-year global private equity exit volume was “incredibly soft” at 1,315, marking the lowest exit pace in over a decade, KPMG said.
Despite these declines, the KPMG report said that the global private equity market “shows resilience” with over $1trn in private equity investment across 9,294 deals in the first half of 2026.
The robust deal value, despite the rolling twelve-month deal count falling to a twenty-one-quarter low, highlights how global private equity investors are focusing on high-value, high-conviction deals in the face of continued geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainties, KPMG stated.
Global private equity exit flow remained subdued, with 1,315 exits in the first half of the year – a pace not seen in over a decade, the report found. Global exit value showed more strength, with $570bn invested at mid-year compared to $1.2trn during all of 2025.
The Americas attracted the largest share of global private equity investment in the first half of 2026 ($579.2bn across 4,319 deals), with the US accounting for $545bn across 3,926 deals of this total. The EMEA region ranked a distant second with $343.2bn of investment across 4,067 deals, followed by the ASPAC region with $67.9bn invested across 639 deals.
While the Americas saw more private equity investment, the EMEA region attracted three of the four largest private equity deals globally in Q2 2026, including EQT’s take-private of UK-based Intertek Group for $14.6bn, Bain’s buyout of Germany-based Everllence for $8.6bn, and CVC Capital Partners and Groupe Bruxelles Lambert’s take-private of Italy-based Recordati for $6.6bn. In comparison, the $10bn launch of US-based Helix Digital Infrastructure by KKR was the largest deal in the Americas, while the secondary buyout of Australia-based I-MED Radiology Network by Jardines was the largest deal in ASPAC.
At a sector level, the KPMG study found that the technology, media, and telecommunications (TMT) sector continued to see the largest share of private equity investment globally, with $354.7bn invested in TMT deals at mid-year, followed by industrial manufacturing at $154 billion. Notably, the energy and natural resources sector was on track for a record high with $149.2bn invested at mid-year, KPMG added.
Gavin Geminder, global head of private equity, KPMG International, said: “The energy sector has already attracted an incredible amount of investment this year. Between jurisdictions looking to reduce the risk of energy dependencies and facilitate the energy transition, and the rapidly accelerating demand for power to support AI infrastructure, this is likely just the beginning when it comes to private equity investment in this space.”
“The energy sector has already attracted an incredible amount of investment this year”
Gavin Geminder, global head of private equity, KPMG International
The UK attracted the largest share of EMEA private equity investment in the first half of 2026 ($105.3bn), including $14.6bn from the take-private of Intertek by EQT in Q2’26. Germany came in second with $34.9bn, including the $8.6bn buyout of Everllence by Bain Capital in Q2’26, followed by France ($31.1bn), Italy ($24.9bn), and Spain ($21.6bn).
KPKG’s researchers believe that private equity investment globally is expected to “remain steady” in Q3’26, driven by the continued focus of private equity investors on making large, high-quality and high-conviction deals. Energy and AI infrastructure are expected to remain “very hot areas” of private equity investment globally, while private equity investors will likely continue to steer clear of software as they continue to reevaluate their existing portfolios given AI disruption.
Hardware, including areas like sensors and robotics, is also expected to see significant interest. Strategic exits are expected to be the most prominent exit route in Q3 2026, although the opening of the US IPO market “might help spark interest” in IPO and dual-track exits, particularly heading into 2027.
Geminder added: “There is still an enormous backlog of exits that need to happen in the global private equity market, which is unlikely to change anytime soon, keeping fundraising quite low – at least outside of very large funds.
“But we’re not seeing fire sales. We’re seeing sponsors being patient, waiting for uncertainties to level. We’re seeing funds re-evaluating their software portfolios while also making big bets on AI infrastructure and hardware. There’s lots of activity happening, just not at the accelerated rates required to start to reduce the record-high backlog of portfolio companies.”
