The eighth edition of Dechert’s Global Private Equity Outlook, published in association with Mergermarket, is a comprehensive annual review of the key trends and themes shaping the global private equity (PE) market.

The survey of 100 senior, global PE executives reveals that GPs believe the market is turning a corner. Buyout and exit values have improved year-on-year, and managers are optimistic about future returns. Though they are under no illusion about the ongoing headwinds, GPs are buoyed by their track record of adaptation and evolution.

Key findings include:

• Geopolitical uncertainty. 49% of respondents cite geopolitical conflicts as a broad macroeconomic factor that is expected to have one of the biggest influences on the deal environment over the coming 12-18 months. At a regional level, however, 65% of EMEA executives see them as one of the main challenges to dealmaking, compared to only 30% of APAC respondents.
• Returns. GPs are more optimistic about the returns outlook for the industry than a year ago. For 2025, EMEA and North American respondents estimate returns of 17.1%. APAC respondents estimate the figure to be slightly higher at 17.4%.
• Valuations. 48% of GPs favor earnouts to help close valuation gaps. In APAC, that number rises to 60%.
• Sector preferences. 75% of survey participants expect to invest in life sciences (including healthcare) over the next 24 months. Almost as many (74%) state that they will invest in technology.
• Co-investment. 52% of respondents have a co-investment program, with 51% across all regions offering their LPs co-investment opportunities in private credit loans obtained by portfolio companies.
• Fundraising. 64% of respondents are expanding into additional investment strategies to mitigate fundraising pressures.
• GP-led secondaries. 46% are utilizing GP-led secondaries or continuation vehicles (CVs) to facilitate DPI for existing LPs and mitigate potential fundraising challenges in the absence of traditional asset selloffs – almost double the number of respondents than in last year’s survey.
• GP-stake divestitures. 77% of survey participants plan to make a GP-stake divestiture in the next 24 months – double the proportion that had these plans a year ago.
• Antitrust issues. 47% of survey participants expect a negative impact from the “politicization” of merger control enforcement.
• Democratization of PE. 73% of respondents expect at least 10% of their next fund to come from retail investors.
• Private credit. 57% of GPs surveyed are using private credit for refinancing and recaps at the portfolio level, making it the most common use case among respondents.
• Fund finance. 36% respondents expect fund finance to increase in the next 12-18 months. One year ago, only 2% anticipated an increase.

The report is also available at dechert.com.