2025-09-19
36 分钟The Economist.
Tell me what private equity is and what it is that you do.
It all sounds so easy.
But what we do is pretty simple.
We raise large amounts of money.
Firms like Blackstone are the kings of private equity.
And then we buy companies using those funds.
We try and improve the companies, and we own them for a while,
and then we sell them and hopefully make a lot of money for our investors.
That that is what we do.
The surge of private equity was supported by years of ultra-low interest rates.
Dealmaking hit a peak in 2021 as those low borrowing costs met a Covid rebound and fiscal support.
Private equity money was washing through Britain and much of the rest of the developed world.
Essentially, you walk down any UK high street
and the chances are you're going to be looking at private equity-owned firms on either side.
The Body Shop, Pizza Express, Wagamama, Byron Burgers.
But now, could all that money be drying up?
High interest rates and concerns about a hawkish Fed continue to weigh on performance.
Negative returns have also been weighing on the private equity industry,
which was in the red last year after a decade-long up cycle.