Private Equity Briefings

The private equity landscape in Canada and globally remains uncertain in 2025, as tariffs and geopolitical factors continue to affect deal-making and investment opportunities. Despite these challenges, there are areas of optimism and activity for proactive investors—particularly in the secondaries market and clean energy sector.

Although Canadian private equity activity declined in Q2 2025, the software sector demonstrated resilience with 19 transactions, while corporate carve-outs continued to gain momentum globally. In contrast, Q1 2025 showed steady activity in Canadian private equity despite tariff measures and trade uncertainty in the United States.

Key trends we are monitoring include:

• growth in the secondaries market, driven by delayed exits, liquidity demands and increasingly tailored deal terms
• sustained demand for clean energy investments, notwithstanding political challenges and tariff impacts on supply chains
• resilience-focused investments in sectors such as IT, AI and services
• continued expansion of private debt as a liquidity solution for sponsors
• evolving ESG considerations now integrated into due diligence processes
• the transformative potential of generative AI to enhance deal lifecycle efficiency and risk assessment

As macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainty persists, remaining agile, adaptive and informed will be essential for private equity participants seeking to navigate the “new stable” and uncover emerging opportunities.