Private equity fund managers are focusing on value creation amid economic uncertainty. The growing consensus is that they no longer feel confident that overall economic growth can deliver strong exits. 

Instead, general partners, or GPs, in private equity and venture capital are putting greater emphasis on improving operations within their portfolio companies to protect and grow value. That value, in turn, is what they're aiming to return to limited partners who are looking for higher distributions.

“The private equity industry is at an inflection point,” said Kevin Zacharuk, Head of Private Equity, Data & Research at S&P Global Market Intelligence. “GPs are shifting their approach to value creation, with operational improvements now ranking as the top priority.”

A Challenging Time For Private Equity

According to the 2026 S&P Global Market Intelligence Private Equity and Venture Capital Outlook report, firms are increasingly constrained by fragmented data and limited visibility into key performance metrics. The report also paints a gloomy macro outlook, with most GPs expecting GDP growth to stagnate or decline. While interest rate expectations remain largely neutral, half of respondents anticipate worsening inflation.

"This is a challenging time for private equity, with an uncertain macro backdrop threatening the  industry's efforts to boost portfolio company exits and increase the flow of profits to investors, a key step toward reversing private equity's fundraising slowdown. But there are reasons for optimism," the report stated.

Record levels of dry powder, coupled with declining interest rates, could ease deal-making both on the entry and exit sides. GPs noted they are "optimistic" that private equity will see an increase in transaction volume this year due to the availability of capital. 

Managers who focus on exits and returning capital to investors are "more likely to succeed" when raising their next funds, while managers who don't generate distributions will struggle to raise capital and attract talent," the report noted.

GPs also noted that they expect fewer companies to pursue IPOs this year, alongside continued pressure on corporate valuations. Despite this, With Intelligence reported that exit activity will at least normalize this year.

Still, private equity transactions increased globally for a second consecutive year in 2025, data shows.

Seven in ten surveyed GPs said that operational improvements and a focus on profitability, not financial engineering, offer the clearest path to a strong exit from a portfolio company investment.

Private Equity AI Adoption Lags

Private equity firms are still in the early stages of integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into their fund operations. Simply put, they "aren't seeing much value from AI, yet.”

GPs were asked to assess the extent of AI adoption across various fund activities, including deal sourcing, valuation and modeling, portfolio company monitoring and value creation, fundraising, and investor relations and reporting. Across most of these functions, a majority of GPs indicated that AI is either minimally integrated or not used at all.

Due diligence stood out as the exception. Even so, fewer than one in four GPs reported that AI is somewhat or fully integrated into their due diligence processes, while a larger share said it is either not integrated or only partially integrated.

A majority of GPs stated that AI was "ineffective" at creating value, while 27% said AI was an effective value-creation tool for the due diligence process.

Firms still have concerns about how to properly use AI as a tool, followed by concerns about data privacy and accuracy.

ETF Watch

  • Invesco Global Listed Private Equity ETF (NYSE:PSP)
  • ProShares Global Listed Private Equity ETF (BATS:PEX)
  • FlexShares Listed Private Equity UCITS ETF (GPB: FLPE)

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