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PE by the Numbers
- Equity investments by PE firms in 2007: $234 billion
- PE funds raised in 2008: $341 billion
- PE transactions in 2008: 1,846
- Average PE equity contribution in 2007: 32%
- Largest PE investments by industry in 2008: Finance; Professional Services; Healthcare; Oil and Gas; Computers and Electronics
- Cumulative net profits returned to investors through 2007: $1.12 trillion
- Average annual return to investors from top-quartile PE firms 1980-2005: 39%
- Share of investments in top 100 PE firms from pension funds, endowments, foundations: 70%
- Number of PE firms in U.S.: 1,040
- Number of PE firms worldwide: 2,150
- Sources and more data
Private Equity investments drive growth, innovation, value at American companies
Through investments in such companies as Hilton Hotels, Univision, Hertz, SunGard, First Data, Dunkin' Brands and hundreds of others, well-known and lesser-known, private equity partnerships help deliver innovative products and services to consumers, provide employment opportunities and drive economic growth.
What's New
New WEF study: Private equity grows industries
A major new World Economic Forum study on private equity concludes that private equity-backed industries grow more rapidly than other industries, whether measured by total production, value added or employment.
“The new WEF study makes a definitive case that private equity is a major driver of economic growth," said Private Equity Council President Douglas Lowenstein. "Coupled with the previous two WEF studies, this report should silence critics who doubt that private equity over time strengthens companies and the economy.”