Sovereign wealth funds played a major role in some of the largest deals in the private markets this year.
As state-backed funds—like the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, a massive asset manager tasked with investing the UAE’s excess oil reserves, and Singapore’s $700 billion-plus fund GIC—continue to grow their AUM, their demand for exposure to lucrative private market deals grows in tandem.
So far this year, private equity deals with sovereign wealth fund backing have totaled $109.8 billion in deal value, on track to be the fourth-largest year on record in terms of state-backed participation, according to PitchBook data.
In July, for example, KKR led an investor group, including the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, in its $23.7 billion acquisition of NetCo, an Italian telecommunications company. The transaction marked the largest sovereign-backed, PE-led deal of the year.
Here’s a list of the 10 largest sovereign-backed, PE-led deals in 2024:
Featured image by Mohamed Hussain Younis/Getty Images
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