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Aileen Chuang

Private equity and other investment firms remain broadly optimistic about deploying capital in acquisitions and initial public offerings (IPOs) globally, supported by ample dry powder and diversification efforts while keeping a close eye on geopolitics, according to senior investment bankers.
As geopolitical uncertainty had become a constant factor in the global market in recent years, “we are broadly optimistic about the opportunities”, Ashu Khullar, head of global asset managers at Citigroup, said in Hong Kong on Monday.
The London-based banker’s comments came as global markets were under renewed pressure, with crude oil surging above US$100 a barrel for the first time since the height of the Russia-Ukraine war in 2022, amid concerns that the US-Israeli war against Iran could be prolonged.
“Geopolitics is something which keeps on raising its head and it is hard to predict how long it will last,” he said. “If anything, all these recent events have shown [that] people need to become more self-sufficient, and that is leading to a fair bit of activity.”
Khullar and Vikram Chavali, Citigroup’s head of Asia-Pacific financial sponsors, said it was too early to comment on current events but their clients’ rebounding sentiment showed signs of resilience.
These financial sponsors, including private equity and infrastructure funds, sovereign wealth and pension funds, family offices and hedge fund clients, sat on massive stores of dry powder and needed to deploy capital to deliver returns to their investors, they said.
Global buyout deal and exit values last year were the second-best in industry history, just behind private equity’s zenith year in 2021, with ready-to-use funds standing at a towering US$1.3 trillion, according to Bain & Co’s global private equity report published last month.

“Deal makers managed to find a way around tariff shocks in the spring, persistent geopolitical turmoil throughout the year, and lingering uncertainty about everything from interest rates to economic growth,” Bain & Co’s partners wrote.
In Asia, financial sponsors were active across markets including Japan, South Korea, India and China, according to Chavali.
“We’re having a lot of discussions with sponsors around potentially looking at the Hong Kong IPO market,” he said. He cited China’s relatively attractive valuations, with investor interest particularly strong in consumer, healthcare, technology, artificial intelligence and industrial sectors.
Chinese financial sponsors and companies were also active in the mergers and acquisitions market.
In January, Anta Sports, China’s largest sportswear firm, announced plans to acquire a 29 per cent stake in German brand Puma for €1.5 billion (US$1.8 billion).
It followed US private investment firm Bain Capital’s completion of its sale of the China data centre portfolio to a consortium led by Shenzhen Dongyangguang Industry. The transaction, which valued the business at around US$4 billion, marked the largest in the history of China’s data centre industry.
“There is an international story to China – both Chinese companies going out, and foreign companies still continuing to come to China,” said Citigroup’s Khullar.
“The whole story about diversification is a real story for Western multinationals, and it’s very much going to be true for the Chinese peers as well because they have capital,” he added.
Global deal making has continued despite the war in the Middle East.
Last week, ⁠Zurich Insurance said shareholders of Britain’s specialty insurer Beazley agreed to the terms of its £8.1 billion (US$10.8 billion) takeover bid. In the same week, British firm Rosebank Industries said it planned to buy two specialty manufacturing companies in the US for US$3.05 billion.


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Private equity, sovereign funds and family offices are sitting on record stocks of dry powder even as geopolitical risks cloud the global outlook


Private equity, sovereign funds and family offices are sitting on record stocks of dry powder even as geopolitical risks cloud the global outlook.


Investment firms remain upbeat on deals despite geopolitical tensions, bankers say

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Private equity, sovereign funds and family offices are sitting on record stocks of dry powder even as geopolitical risks cloud the global outlook

Private equity, sovereign funds and family offices are sitting on record stocks of dry powder even as geopolitical risks cloud the global outlook