2019 Could be a Good Year for PE Fundraising

The US private equity fundraising environment in 2017 shattered post-recession records. If early signs are any indication, 2019 could be nearly as lucrative. Genstar Capital closed its ninth flagship fund on $5.5 billion Monday, easily surpassing a predecessor that raised $3.95 billion in 2017. The firm also raised $1.1 billion from select LPs and additional capital from other affiliated entities, bringing the fundraising total to roughly $7 billion. That's big news for Genstar, which has emerged as a heavyweight in US private equity. In 2018, the San Francisco-based firm completed 79 PE deals, besting Audax Group (which had 62 transactions) to make it by far the most active PE firm in the US, per the PitchBook 2018 Annual Global League Tables. It's also big news for US private equity fundraising, which in 2018 experienced a roughly 28% YoY dip in total capital raised and a 19.5% YoY decrease in the number of closed PE funds, per PitchBook data. So far, 2019 hasn't made up any ground when it comes to the number of closed vehicles. Capital raised, however, is on pace to reach roughly $220 billion, which would top last year's figure and reach shouting distance of the record $232 billion raised two years ago.

https://pitchbook.com/news/articles/heres-why-2019-could-be-another-fundraising-boom-year-for-us-pe