Private Equity US Private Equity Outlook 2026

Resilience and agility will define success as firms navigate shifting markets in 2026.

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What to Expect in 2026

Emerging from several years of lackluster deal volume, the Private Equity markets began to rebound in 2024 with similar results in 2025. For an inside perspective on where the market stands and what to expect going forward into 2026, HUB engaged in conversations with three leaders at prominent private equity funds: Kern Vohra, Principal of Tactical Opportunities at Blackstone, Adam Halpern-Leistner, Director at Hellman & Friedman, and Bryant Seaman, Principal at Altas Partners.

Prognosis

Pre-acquisition practices

Post-acquisition value creation

Exit Strategies

Prognosis

Market experts point to a steadily more promising IPO path continuing into 2026, opening long-delayed liquidity opportunities for private equity-owned businesses. They anticipate greater overall deal volume from both public markets and strategic acquirers, particularly should the anticipated lower-interest rate environment persist. As Bryant Seaman reports, “We're starting to get into the sweet spot where people are looking to monetize and exit the wave of acquisitions and investments that happened in 2020 through the first half of 2022.”

An increasingly robust market despite greater uncertainty

While sharing an optimistic outlook, Adam Halpern-Leistner did, however, add a note of caution. “We're in a very good environment where there's a lot coming to market, but there are also many businesses that we as investors are cautious about investing in right now because of uncertainty around the health of the consumer and the labor market.”

The HUB Private Equity team handles deals in ‘deal time.’ With compressed deadlines and no hand-offs, the HUB team gives funds the confidence to close faster with reps & warranties, tax and contingent liability solutions.

Asset valuations and debt markets are constructive today and while there is dispersion, high quality companies continue to perform well. As a result, we're seeing plenty of pipeline activity and are optimistic that continues into 2026.

In the current market, Kern Vohra sees a flight to quality in more resilient cash-flow sectors, as well as a greater interest in hybrid deal structures that combine elements of equity and debt. Adam Halpern-Leistner adds that the emphasis on quality has created a significant divergence of valuations among companies in the same industry. He notes, “Going back four or five years, companies within the same industry would trade at similar multiples, regardless of differences in quality. Now you have the industry leaders trading at really good multiples, but the laggers unable to trade at all.” Bryant Seaman agreed, suggesting that exhibited durability and more appreciation for professionalization are two of the factors that may help explain the evolution in multiples. While extensive due diligence has always been a primary concern, Kern Vohra suggests that the premium being demanded for quality requires a newly heightened level of scrutiny for sourcing acquisitions. With liquidity more constrained, he’s placing greater emphasis identifying

companies that are doing something truly unique within their industries versus just “being in the flow of things.” He believes these practices will be increasingly important as funds attempt to distinguish themselves in a competitive market. Bryant Seaman added a fundamental perspective, “The most quantitative expression of quality is just growth—high quality businesses outperform lower quality businesses from a growth perspective.”

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Hybrid solutions and diverging valuations

Pre-acquisition practices

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Download our 2026 Private Equity Outlook and Insurance Market Rate Report to see what to expect in the coming year.

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In working to help his firm’s portfolio companies create value, Bryant Seaman stresses the importance of not only building effective partnerships but also empowering operators, “We like to be value-add thought partners and engaged board members, but ultimately, we’re there to support and enable operators. So, developing and establishing great alignment with our management teams is our first priority. Second is providing them the resources that they need to be successful, and to ensure that the management team is incentivized to execute against the value creation plan that we've developed right alongside them.” He also stresses the importance of understanding what really drives the business, figuring out the key metrics to track and closely monitor them over time. More of the current moment, HUB’s panelists from Altas, Blackstone and Hellman & Friedman agree that the adoption of AI to generate efficiencies is a primary concern across all their portfolio companies, not just for those involved in developing the technologies. Adam Halpern-Leistner encourages his portfolio companies to think broadly about how investments in AI can generate competitive advantage, “Are there ways you can really drive technology through the business? Is it sales demand and pipeline forecasting? Is it procurement optimization? Is it pricing analytics? Are there things that you can do to propel margin expansion?”

Partly driven by technological advancement, our experts also stress a heightened focus on the second tier of management. Kern Vohra suggests, “With everything going on in the AI landscape, having the right talent within the portfolio is more important than ever.” Adam Halpern-Leistner expanded on the theme, “we want to partner not just with best-in-class companies but best-in-class teams. Making sure that portfolios have the right frameworks around talent evaluation and augmentation is something that we are very, very focused on.”

Alignment, efficiency and deeper benches

Post-acquisition value creation

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With many investors demanding greater liquidity sooner, the panel stressed the need for companies to be prepared for an exit far in advance of the event, suggesting that the windows of opportunity tend to open and close quickly. Adam Halpern-Leistner also foresees a rise in creative strategies to generate liquidity, including a potential increased use of already popular continuation vehicles. These funds were the fastest growing area of the secondaries market in the first half of 2025, with $41 billion of transaction volume—a 60% year-over-year increase.1 Somewhat further afield, Halpern-Leister and Vohra have been involved in partial exit strategies that have worked like a private IPO. As Kern explains it, “partial liquidity events for a company allow different institutional investors to cycle in and out, while maintaining private market status.”

“Private” IPOs and continuation funds

Exit Strategies

Private equity firms in 2026 are navigating a market defined by cautious optimism, shifting valuations, the adoption of AI and increasingly creative exit strategies. Against this backdrop, the difference between opportunity and risk often comes down to preparation and protection. At HUB, we help private equity firms and their portfolio companies align with this evolving landscape by:

How HUB Helps Guide the Path Ahead

From representations & warranties insurance to rapid diligence support, we help funds move quickly and confidently when deal windows open.

Streamlining Transactions

We deliver enterprise risk management (ERM) frameworks and customized risk transfer solutions to create efficiencies across diverse holdings, strengthening performance and protecting value creation strategies.

Optimizing Portfolios

As firms invest in AI-driven efficiencies, digital infrastructure and talent strategies, HUB supports resilience through cyber coverage, tailored employee benefit strategies and wellbeing programs, and executive risk protection such as D&O and EPL coverages that safeguard leadership teams and workforce vitality.

Enabling Growth & Innovation

Whether through IPO, continuation funds or private liquidity events, we ensure portfolio companies are exit-ready, with risk and insurance programs built to withstand investor scrutiny and regulatory review, preserving deal value and accelerating close.

Preparing for Exit

Download our 2026 INSERT Outlook and Insurance Market Rate Report to see what to expect in the coming year.

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Leigh Speicher