Global PE fund raising in June qtr up 28%, at $76 bn

Global private equity fund raising has surged 28 per cent to $76.2 billion in the second quarter of 2009 on the back of an increased investor appetite for new investments.     

"Fund raising in Q2 2009 represents a significant improvement from Q1 2009, with 82 funds raising an aggregate $76.2 billion," a report by global research firm Preqin said.     

Private equity fund raising in the April-June quarter of 2009 showed signs of recovery and touched $76 billion scaling 2005 levels. In the first quarter of 2009 PE firms had raised $59.6 billion.     

"The increase in capital raised indicates that investor appetite for new investments is increasing. In conjunction with the drop in number of funds in market, this will go some way to improve conditions for fund managers with funds currently in market," Preqin added.     

So far this year the level of capital available to the fund managers has fallen and many investors are not currently able to invest at all while others are committing less capital than in previous years.     

"We expect private equity fund raising to continue to grow over the course of 2009, although, it may still be some time before the levels that we experienced in recent years are seen again," Preqin spokesperson Tim Friedman said.