2026 Dechert PE Outlook Report: Signs of a Gradual Thaw

PE buyout value by sector in Asia-Pacific (US$ million), Q1-Q3 2025 vs. Q1-Q3 2024

The consumer space, by contrast, saw year-on-year deal value for the first nine months climb from just US$5.5 billion in 2024 to US$16.8 billion in 2025, with Temasek’s minority investment in Indian snacks and sweets business Haldiram’s, valuing the business at US$1 billion, boosting total deal value for the sector. Transaction volumes in the real estate sector dropped dramatically as higher rates and financing costs, China’s property woes and regulatory/geopolitical uncertainty created valuation gaps, delaying deals and dampening investor risk appetite. As with overall deal figures, however, sector buyout numbers do have to be interpreted in a regional context, with sector deal drivers varying between APAC jurisdictions. “In Japan, there’s a focus on corporate carve-outs and succession solutions; in India, the priority sectors are financial services, digital infrastructure, healthcare and energy transition; in China, data and cyber are busy areas; while the Philippines has opened up various sectors to foreign investment and Indonesia has put an incredibly investor-friendly regime in place,” Pedersen says. Outlook Looking ahead to 2026, APAC dealmakers will be focused on securing more exits to accelerate distributions to investors. “The top priority for APAC GPs will be to drive liquidity and orchestrate exits across all channels, including trade sales, selective IPOs in jurisdictions like India and Japan, sponsor- to-sponsor deals and GP-led transactions,” Pedersen says. APAC deal markets will have to continue adjusting to changes in global trade dynamics and making use of diverse deal structuring tools to achieve these objectives. “Dealmakers will have to be creative to land bespoke exits. I expect that we will see the use of several innovative structures to ride the wave,” says Pedersen. Sponsors with strong track records in the region, however, are well placed to benefit from encouraging tailwinds set to buoy APAC dealmaking in the year ahead and beyond. “This is a very interesting time for APAC PE. There is a wave of change sweeping through corporates and family- owned entities in the region, which will spur carve-outs, family sell downs and succession solutions,” Pedersen says. “These dynamics will help to fill deal pipelines and open up interesting deal flow for PE firms.”

TMT

ș20,580

ș27,321

IndustriǸls & ChȃmicǸls

ș20,140

ș10,728

Consumȃr

ș16,779

ș5,463

PhǸrmǸ, MȃdicǸl & Biotȃch

ș13,105

ș14,611

FinǸnciǸl Sȃrvicȃs

ș9,505

ș6,505

EnȃrȌy, MininȌ & Utilitiȃs

ș8,529

ș4,357

Businȃss Sȃrvicȃs

ș8,426

ș22,226

RȃǸl EstǸtȃ

ș2,548

ș12,770

Construction

ș2,527 ș2,753

TrǸnsportǸtion

ș2,164 ș2,399

AȌriculturȃ

ș1,555

ș183

Lȃisurȃ

ș1,168

ș2,192

Dȃfȃnsȃ

ș504

ș390

Govȃrnmȃnt

ș152 ș105

Othȃr

ș19 ș8

Q1-Q3 2025 Q1-Q3 2024

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