In a continuing challenging economic environment, global private equity activity remained fairly steady in Q3 2025. According to the “Pulse of Private Equity” report from KPMG International, global investment volume reached appr. $1.5 trillion in the first three quarters, including $537 billion in the third quarter. This was achieved despite a decline in global transaction activity to 4,062 deals compared to 5,070 in the same quarter during the past year. The US recorded a “historically high investment volume” of $300.2 billion in the third quarter – the “highest in 14 quarters.”
Germany and Europe also showed stable developments, “supported by high liquidity and an improved macroeconomic situation.”
In the EMA region, the investment volume in 2025 totaled $474.2 billion from Q1 to Q3 (Q3: $178.3 billion); Germany contributed “to the overall result in the third quarter with 138 deals and USD 15.2 billion.”
This puts the region close to the total investment volume for 2024 ($647 billion). But, the number of transactions continued “to decline, with 1,736 deals announced in the third quarter compared to 2,168 in the same quarter last year, the lowest level in almost five years.”
This confirms an ongoing trend: high valuations continue to “be paid for high-quality companies, but their limited supply is increasingly intensifying competition for first-class assets.”
Even though private equity activity in Germany and Europe remains subdued, confidence is “growing in the German and European private equity market, especially with regard to the coming months.”
Financing conditions are said to be improving, the large-cap segment is recovering, and investors are increasingly “focusing on the growth areas of infrastructure, energy, and defense – segments that are gaining importance thanks to government programs and technological innovations.”
Meanwhile, KPMG said in the update that they are “seeing a continuing run on high-quality assets, which continue to command high valuations despite the overall subdued market.”
This positive development is also now said to be contributing to the changed perception of private equity. PE investors are now reportedly establishing themselves as reliable transformation partners – both in “carve-outs from large corporations and in family-run companies.”
Especially in an environment of structural change, financial investors are increasingly taking on “an active role in the strategic realignment and growth security of medium-sized companies.”
The global exit market also exhibited some signs of recovery, although at a relatively low level. Globally, the exit value at the end of Q3 2025 amounted to $832 billion for about 2,155 transactions—which is said to be lowest level in more than a decade.
In the EMA region, exit activity remained fairly weak in the third quarter: the exit value was $220 billion with over 936 deals (end of Q3 2025) – after $340.5 billion with 1,675 transactions in 2024 as a whole.
