EUROPE – European private equity continued its strong performance streak of recent years into 2000 with overall results for all fund stages showing a 14.9% pooled IRR (internal rate of return) since inception.

The figures were slightly lower, although still healthy, for venture stages of the private equity chain, which returned a 13.7% IRR.
Median figures for the two classes come out at around half the pooled figures, registering 7.2% IRR for venture funds and 7.3% for all private equity funds.

Top quartile results for all private equity funds, however, produced far greater results, showing an IRR of 33.3% since inception.

The results taken from the latest Investment Benchmarks Study by Venture Economics, part of the Thomson Financial Securities Data group, in co-operation with the European Private Equity & Venture Capital Association (EVCA), are taken from sample data including a total of e69.8bn of committed capital in 479 funds, 427 of which are mature (i.e. raised between 1980-1998).

Jesse Reyes, vice president of Venture Economics, comments: “We are very pleased with the study results. Although the one year numbers demonstrate the effect of last year’s market corrections, long-term results are again very strong for this asset class.”

This year’s investment benchmarks study includes data to the end of December 2000, providing the latest and most representative pan-European performance measurement information and allowing comparison with other asset classes.




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