After years of navigating choppy waters, European private equity is finally seeing calmer seas ahead. The 2026 IPEM PE Barometer, produced in collaboration with AlixPartners, reveals an industry more optimistic than at any point since the pandemic, and one rapidly reshaping itself for a new era.
Optimism Returns
The mood has shifted. A striking 58% of GPs now expect an improved global business environment, up from 51% last year and the most since 2021. European sentiment tells a similar story, with 55% bullish on the region's prospects, the highest figure in five years and a significant jump from just 38% in 2025.
This optimism is translating into action. Nearly 70% of respondents plan to deploy more capital this year, and 87% see 2026 as a good year for dealmaking.
Wealth Investors Take Centre Stage
The most dramatic transformation is happening on the fundraising front. A remarkable 98% of respondents now distribute products to wealth investors, up from 80% in 2025. The average firm uses 3.2 distribution channels to reach these investors, up from 2.2 last year.
Perhaps more telling is what's no longer a barrier. Investor education, the top-cited blocker in 2025, has dropped to fourth place. Wealth investors and their intermediaries have rapidly become au fait with private markets products. The perception used to be that wealth investors needed to catch up to the industry; now it seems the industry needs to catch up with them.
Three-quarters of GPs cite regulation as a main blocker to accessing wealth capital, up from 58% last year. Operational challenges around client onboarding and evergreen fund structures are also weighing on firms, with 97% acknowledging liquidity risks in semi-liquid products.
Research conducted with the support of our industry association partners:
Fundraising Heats Up
GPs aren't just set to deploy capital this year; they're anticipating raising it too. A record 73% expect to launch a new fund in 2026, up from 63% last year. More than half plan to introduce entirely new strategies, particularly private credit, secondaries, buyouts, and growth capital.
There's a catch, however. Fundraising activity looks set to concentrate among larger players: 90% of firms with 50+ staff expect to raise this year, compared with just 60% of smaller outfits. And despite the flurry of activity, expectations for fund sizes are more tempered, with fewer GPs anticipating they'll exceed their previous raises.
The Exit Window Opens
Perhaps the most significant shift lies in exit expectations. While 97% still cite a difficult exit environment as a key risk, optimism about improvement has surged. Six in ten GPs expect better conditions in their segment, up from 44% last year, the highest reading in four years.
Secondary processes have firmly established themselves as part of the liquidity toolkit, with 39% of respondents planning to explore this route. Sales to PE sponsors (66%) and strategic buyers (61%) remain the dominant exit paths, while IPO expectations remain subdued at just 20%.
Value Creation in Focus
With exits on the horizon, GPs are sharpening their preparations. More than half will spend additional time on exit readiness this year, with a clear focus on articulating equity stories and value creation plans (72%) and preparing management teams for sale processes (53%).
Buy-and-build remains the favoured value creation lever (67%), followed by geographic and product expansion (62%) and margin improvement programmes (60%). Meanwhile, AI implementation continues to mature: 47% report successful deployment in portfolio companies, though the industry acknowledges significant room for growth
The 2026 IPEM Private Equity Barometer paints a picture of an industry emerging from a difficult period with renewed confidence and fundamentally different priorities. Wealth investors have arrived in force, exits are back on the agenda, and operational sophistication matters more than ever.
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