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European PE sponsors are striking new deals faster than they can exit old ones, and the gap is widening.
According to PitchBook's Q2 2026 European PE Breakdown, the continent's deals-to-exit ratio widened from 2.4x in 2025 to 2.9x in the first half of this year, the highest level in at least a decade. Around 1,556 deals were struck in the first six months of 2026, while only 537 ****** ets were realized.
The backlog continues to build despite a 29.7% quarter-over-quarter surge in exit value to €98.8 billion (about $113.3 billion), the best quarter in three years. However, exit count remained flat, showing that exits are concentrated in a small number of very large realizations.
In fact, 22 mega-exits accounted for 65.8% of all exit value, compared with an average of 43.6% over the past decade. It's a top-of-market clearing event that's lifting a select group of sponsors holding marquee ****** ets, while the rest of the market remains largely stalled beneath it, according to the report.
European PE sponsors are striking new deals faster than they can exit old ones, and the gap is widening.
According to PitchBook's Q2 2026 European PE Breakdown, the continent's deals-to-exit ratio widened from 2.4x in 2025 to 2.9x in the first half of this year, the highest level in at least a decade. Around 1,556 deals were struck in the first six months of 2026, while only 537 ****** ets were realized.
The backlog continues to build despite a 29.7% quarter-over-quarter surge in exit value to €98.8 billion (about $113.3 billion), the best quarter in three years. However, exit count remained flat, showing that exits are concentrated in a small number of very large realizations.
In fact, 22 mega-exits accounted for 65.8% of all exit value, compared with an average of 43.6% over the past decade. It's a top-of-market clearing event that's lifting a select group of sponsors holding marquee ****** ets, while the rest of the market remains largely stalled beneath it, according to the report.
2 months ago
