The chief executive of private equity firm 3i Group says he still sees opportunities in the European buyout market, despite the credit crunch, Reuters reports
Philip Yea says 3i is relatively well-placed to confront the tougher circumstances now facing the industry. European deals could take longer now and there were some sectors, such as retail, where it was hard to get credit, Yea told Reuters in an interview.
“There are opportunities still flowing in the market,” he adds. “It’s just a market that’s going to take a little longer and the pricing will need a while to settle down.”
The U.S. and European private equity industries, which drove much of the earlier merger boom, were hit hard last year by the credit crisis, which crimped their ability to raise debt capital for leverage transactions. Some deals have fallen through due to lack of financing.
The Asian private equity industry however has largely shrugged off the crisis.
Yea said the market for very large deals in Europe had closed but “there are deals going to get done.”
“There is still an awful lot of equity available and for the right deals, priced more cautiously, there is debt available so I don’t think we see a situation where deals stop altogether,” he says.
Yea is one of about 25 business executives accompanying Prime Minister Gordon Brown on a visit to China and India and spoke aboard the prime minister’s plane.