FINANCE Buy-out List 2026: a foundation for renewed growth

Stagnation or stability at a high level? Interpreting market data is often a matter of perspective. The exclusive Buy-out List, which FINANCE has been compiling together with Deutsche Beteiligungs AG (DBAG) for more than two decades, delivers facts for 2025 that point towards a more dynamic 2026.

The numbers speak for themselves: with 45 transactions in the segment between 50 million and 250 million euros enterprise value, activity was slightly above the previous year (42 deals). Market volume remained stable at 4.8 billion euros. What may look unspectacular at first glance is, in reality, a proof point for resilience. While other M&A segments (particularly venture and large-cap) recorded, in some cases, double-digit declines, the buy-out market held its ground.

A key factor behind this stability is the return of planning certainty on the financing side. Banks and private debt providers are once again competing healthily for the most attractive financings. This is also evident in covenant structures, which have normalised. At the same time, lenders’ willingness to support growth trajectories constructively is high.

Equally noteworthy is the shift in market sentiment: pessimism has given way to pragmatic optimism. “If we have a good feeling about an attractive transaction, we move,” FINANCE quotes one market participant as saying. This mindset matters because it shows that the sense of paralysis driven by macroeconomic uncertainty has eased.

2025 was a year of consolidation, while 2026 is shaping up to be a year of acceleration. With a well-filled pipeline and a functioning financing market, the key ingredients are in place for private equity investments to fully play their role again as a catalyst for transformation in the “Mittelstand”.