{"id":66004,"date":"2026-03-17T09:20:55","date_gmt":"2026-03-17T08:20:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mf.ag\/?p=66004"},"modified":"2026-04-04T10:54:07","modified_gmt":"2026-04-04T08:54:07","slug":"private-equity-as-client-and-owner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mf.ag\/en\/articles\/private-equity-as-client-and-owner\/","title":{"rendered":"Private Equity as Client and Owner"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Private Equity as Client and Owner<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Twenty\u2011five years ago, the European private equity industry was still in its early stages and had yet to establish a firm position in the market. Today, PE has become a central driver of business transformation, capital allocation and value creation across the continent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Twenty\u2011five years ago, VALTUS and Management Factory were founded. At that time, the concept of interim management was still largely unfamiliar. Today, with fee volumes of \u20ac2.8 billion, Europe is by far the largest market for executive interim management solutions\u2014larger than the Americas, Asia, Australia and Africa combined.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Executive interim managers and interim management providers deliberately target PE funds as clients. PE funds, in turn, actively rely on executive interim managers for their portfolio companies\u2014and have identified interim management providers as attractive targets for their portfolios.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This article sheds light on the current dynamics, offering snapshots from several European countries and an overview of PE fund participation in interim management providers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next 25 years present major opportunities for both sides. There is much to suggest that PE funds and executive interim management providers will continue to work closely together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The PE Market Is Regaining Momentum<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

After two years of subdued activity, the European private equity market is shifting from a period of stabilization to renewed momentum. According to Roland Berger\u2019s European Private Equity Outlook 2026<\/em>, more than 75% of surveyed industry experts expect the number of M&A transactions involving private equity investors to increase in 2026 compared with 2025.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This optimism is driven by several factors: deferred exits are now coming to market, valuation gaps between buyers and sellers are narrowing, and financing conditions are improving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Overall European deal activity is already showing early signs of recovery. Transaction volume increased by 13% from 2024 to 2025, with Scandinavia, the UK and the DACH region leading the growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the recovery is increasingly concentrated in larger transactions. In 2025, global private equity deal value rose by 19% to USD 2.6 trillion, while the number of deals fell by 5%. The increase was therefore driven solely by larger average deal sizes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Europe shows the same trend: while average deal value in North America rose by 29%, Europe still saw an increase of 8%. The market is becoming more selective, with fewer but significantly larger transactions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These developments are good news for experienced executive interim managers. PE funds have clear goals; they need rapid, measurable results; they understand the importance of leadership; and under typical PE thinking (\u201cnormalized EBITDA multiple\u201d), the payback calculation is straightforward: a slightly higher EBITDA and\/or a better multiple at exit\u2014and the investment in a top\u2011tier interim executive has already paid off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bj\u00f6rn Henriksson, Group CEO of VALTUS, summarizes it perfectly:
\u201cIn complex situations\u2014such as post\u2011merger integrations, carve\u2011outs, buy\u2011and\u2011build platforms or cross\u2011border transactions\u2014value is often lost: between planning and execution, between synergy targets and actual P&L impact, between IT systems and reliable data, or between governance structures and day\u2011to\u2011day operational decision\u2011making. Permanent management teams are often overstretched. Executive interim managers clearly create value by providing immediate execution capacity, clear accountability and proven approaches from comparable situations.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which Sectors Will Shape the Next Era of PE?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The sector landscape in European private equity is evolving significantly. Technology, software and digital solutions led the market with around 800 transactions in 2025. This segment is also expected to deliver the highest growth rates in 2026 (Roland Berger).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the same time, infrastructure is emerging as a major new investment field. In Germany alone, the government\u2019s investment programs\u2014totalling around \u20ac500 billion over the next ten years\u2014are expected to trigger \u20ac200\u2013250 billion in infrastructure investments. Mobility, energy grids and specialized civil engineering are likely to benefit disproportionately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cGermany\u2019s large\u2011scale infrastructure programs create enormous value creation potential at the implementation level. Portfolio companies of PE funds and family offices can scale rapidly by bringing in interim executives, professionalizing PMO structures and restoring margin discipline amid inflation and supply chain volatility. Interim CEOs, COOs and CFOs accelerate decision\u2011making, close governance gaps and convert public funding into predictable cash flows,\u201d says Manoj George, Partner at VALTUS Germany.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Healthcare and pharma continued their structural growth in 2024 and 2025, recording a 41% increase in deal activity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Emmanuel Fretti, Senior Partner at VALTUS France, observes:
\u201cIn France and across Europe, private equity growth will be particularly strong in sectors where buy\u2011and\u2011build strategies and operational transformation can create scalable value\u2014especially in healthcare services, technology\u2011enabled B2B platforms and specialized industrial niches around the energy transition. These markets are fragmented and dominated by owner\u2011managed mid\u2011cap companies. Our work with PE\u2011backed scale\u2011ups and healthcare firms shows: the decisive differentiator is the ability to execute value\u2011creation programs quickly and rigorously with experienced leaders.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Italy, Pietro Butt\u00e9, Partner at VALTUS Italy, also expects favourable conditions for private equity investment:
\u201cItaly\u2019s strength lies in traditional industries such as manufacturing and luxury goods\u2014sectors likely to attract increasing PE interest over the next decade. In addition, renewable energy plays a crucial role, supported by Italy\u2019s National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), backed by substantial EU funding with a strong focus on green investment.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Business services, financial services and MedTech also remain attractive for PE investors due to their scalability and stable, recurring revenues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Is the Current PE Environment in Austria?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In Austria too, PE investments are returning to a growth trajectory after several challenging years. A key driver of current activity is the succession wave in family\u2011owned businesses. Many entrepreneurs of the \u201cpost\u2011war generation\u201d are retiring, often without suitable successors within the family\u2014opening the door to acquisitions by PE firms. Austria\u2019s largest PE provider, Invest AG, focuses on majority investments in family\u2011run companies, often accompanied by experienced interim managers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have supported several succession\u2011related transactions. Interim managers in these cases need a special talent and sensitivity for working with the culture of formerly family\u2011led companies,\u201d says Gerhard W\u00fcest, Partner at VALTUS Management Factory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Axel K\u00fchner, former CEO of Greiner AG and former top executive at Daimler, also sees strong potential in combining interim management and private equity in succession contexts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PE Funds Are Investing in European Interim Management Providers<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

While interim managers enjoy working with PE funds, PE funds are increasingly investing in professional services firms and interim management providers. A prominent example is VALTUS, in which Soci\u00e9t\u00e9 G\u00e9n\u00e9rale Capital Partenaires and GENEO Capital Entrepreneur have been shareholders for several years. In February 2026, Polaris Equity joined as the new majority investor. Founded nearly 30 years ago by the M\u00f8ller\u2011M\u00e6rsk family and Danish financial institutions, Polaris Equity supports the expansion of growth\u2011oriented companies. Polaris has known VALTUS for many years through its cooperation with VALTUS Nordic Interim and has repeatedly used their interim managers in its portfolio.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other providers also have PE involvement:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n