The past and future of PE: How COVID-19 accelerated trends and fueled dealmaking
March 23, 2021
Last spring, PitchBook's quantitative analysts provided a playbook for what private equity might face in the then-nascent COVID-19 crisis. A year on, the newest edition of our Quantitative Perspectives report revisits those predictions and considers the impact of a recession unlike any in history.
What felt like a free fall was followed by a recovery lasting just months, rather than the typical yearslong struggle to return to normal. 2020's wild ride is setting up private equity for a fascinating future. Highlights from the report include:
What felt like a free fall was followed by a recovery lasting just months, rather than the typical yearslong struggle to return to normal. 2020's wild ride is setting up private equity for a fascinating future. Highlights from the report include:
- The unprecedented amount of monetary and fiscal stimulus that fueled the speedy recovery will have lasting impacts on financial markets.
- Far from completely disrupting PE, the pandemic accelerated long-term trends and raised resilience by driving dealmaking in tech and healthcare.
- The record amount of liquidity available to buy private companies—over $2.3 trillion—should provide a tailwind for PE-backed exits in 2021.