Private Equity Firms Hold 33,575 Unsold Companies as Exit Backlog Hits 3rd Year
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Aug 10
Private Equity Firms Hold 33,575 Unsold Companies as Exit Backlog Hits 3rd Year
1 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Aug 10
Summary
33,575 portfolio companies were still unsold as of June 30, PitchBook said, up from 32,451 at the end of 2025 and 15,923 a decade earlier.
The pileup leaves private equity sidelined even as broader dealmaking revives, because many firms cannot sell or float assets at the returns their investors expect.
That strains the industry's buy-improve-sell model, which typically aims to exit investments within five to seven years after adding debt and boosting performance.
Pension funds and endowments that paid high fees for market-beating returns now face the risk that firms may have to sell companies at significant losses.