The state of Nordic private equity 2024

Argentum

Develops and sells renewable energy projects, including wind and solar power.

Designs and manufactures sustainable heating and cooling solutions for buildings.

Produces and markets functional beverages and health supplements.

Provides digital solutions for energy, infrastructure, and sustainability management.

Generation Investment Management and Advent International

 Most active fund managers in terms of investments in new portfolio companies. Add-on investments not included.

Note that parts of CapMan’s investments include areas beyond traditional buyout investments, such as special situations, infrastructure, and growth.

Edita Prima, Haminan Kaukolämpö, Innofactor

Digital Group, Fire Eater, Gavefabrikken, Intermail,

Swedish investors dominate: Swedish investors account for approximately 25 percent of all investments in the Nordic buyout segment, followed by investors from the UK and Denmark, with 18 and 16 percent respectively.

 Swedish investors account for approximately 25 percent of all investments in the Nordic buyout segment, followed by investors from the UK and Denmark, with 18 and 16 percent respectively.

“We offer not just a reporting tool, but an operational tool in real-time. That is our competitive advantage”

Invested in Nordic buyout companies in 2024.  

A person in a suit and tie

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Millum had a scalable solution with proven potential and ambitions for international growth. They were already active in several countries, showing sustainable and profitable growth. We have extensive experience in the procurement market and believe we are the right partner to elevate it further.

Buyout fundraising: Fundraising driven by large-cap funds

In total, buyout funds secured €14.6 billion in 2024, with 16 funds successfully closing. Large-cap funds drove the increase, raising three times as much capital as in 2023. Looking ahead, fund managers expect buyout fundraising to reach €10.2 billion in 2025.

In total, Nordic buyout funds raised €14.6 billion in 2024, up from €7.2 billion in 2023.

16 funds closed in 2024, up from 15 in 2023.

The six large-cap funds (>1 bn €) accounted for 86 percent of the capital raised. 

Fundraising expectations for 2025 indicate a decline, with €10.2 billion expected to be raised, in line with the historical trend of alternating strong and weaker fundraising years.

In 2024, a total of 16 funds successfully closed, raising €14.6 billion. This represents a substantial rebound from the €7.2 billion raised in 2023. The pattern of cyclical fundraising continues, with large fund managers typically raising significant amounts every other year. However, the trend, while not as pronounced as in previous years, still reflects the consistent pattern: Fundraising was higher in 2018, 2020, 2022, and 2024, lower in 2017, 2019, 2021, and 2023. 

< €1 bn

> €1 bn

 fundraising by fund size in Nordic buyout

Large-cap funds accounted for a larger share of total funds raised in 2024, driven by both an increase in capital raised by large funds and a decline in fundraising among smaller funds.

In 2024, fundraising performance saw an increase due to the closure of large-cap funds, which raised three times more capital than in 2023. Six large-cap funds closed in 2024, with three of them raising over €2 billion each.

 One of the large-cap funds have not announced its closing publicly and are not included in the table below.

 In contrast, fewer small-cap funds raised capital in 2024, accompanied by a decrease in the average amount raised per fund compared to 2023. 

Top 10 Nordic buyout funds with public closing

public information, either on the funds’ websites or according to news articles.

Note that this only reflects the amount raised by the fund in 2024. The total fund size is larger.

According to Argentum’s overview, Nordic buyout funds are expected to raise €10.2 billion in 2025. While this would represent a considerable slowdown from 2024 – the fundraising environment remains challenging. 

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A total of 71 buyout exits were completed in 2024, one fewer exit than in 2023.

This figure is 15 percent lower than the average for the period 2019–23. 

Companies in the ICT and Energy sectors accounted for a larger-than-normal share of exits.

The split between exits in large-cap and small- and medium-cap companies was unchanged from 2023. 

Nordic buyout exits (excluding write-offs), 
2012-2024

Provide housing, support, education and personnel for health and social care.

Independent upstream oil and gas company.

Focuses on the commercialization of medicines for rare diseases and specialty care.

Provides facility management, catering, and support services across various industries.

Investments by quarter: Half the amount invested in 2024 was invested the first quarter. The number of investments were evenly spread throughout the year, all quarters within the interval of 32-36 investments. 

A leading investment bank providing financial advisory and capital market services.

 Half the amount invested in 2024 was invested the first quarter. The number of investments were evenly spread throughout the year, all quarters within the interval of 32-36 investments. 

Specializes in sustainable waste management and recycling solutions.

Develops and provides advanced proteomics solutions for biomarker discovery and precision medicine.

Trade sales top: After secondary exits emerged as the preferred approach in 2023, trade sale was again the preferred exit strategy in 2024. 

 After secondary exits emerged as the preferred approach in 2023, trade sale was again the preferred exit strategy in 2024. 

A person with curly hair wearing a suit and white shirt

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, Investment Director at Norvestor, stated that the expectations for the market in 2024 were higher than what they evidently saw: 

– There was a greater expectation that more assets would have come to market last year, and many of them remain in the pipeline, ready for execution. We expect 2025 to follow a similar trend. 

Changes in the sector composition: In 2024, the sector composition of Nordic buyout exits shifted. Industrials remained the largest sector, accounting for 28 percent of all exits, although this was down from its 2019–2023 average. ICT followed closely at 25 percent, marking an increase compared to the previous five-year average. 

In 2024, the sector composition of Nordic buyout exits shifted. Industrials remained the largest sector, accounting for 28 percent of all exits, although this was down from its 2019–2023 average. ICT followed closely at 25 percent, marking an increase compared to the previous five-year average. 

Buyout exits by year and home country of company

Nordic buyout: PE-backed exits by country,

“Facility management is a large market with a lot of business to compete for. The combination of strong organic growth opportunities, business development, and the buy-and-build approach made it easy to see that this company could grow much larger.” 

“We shared our expertise with the company and contributed to establishing M&A capabilities within 4Service, responsible for screening and validating opportunities, executing acquisitions, and developing integration plans.” 

“We can reveal that this is Norvestor’s best investment to date”

Median entry multiples for Nordic buyouts

Decreasing entry multiples: Prices decreased in 2024 and fell below historical average.

Prices decreased in 2024 and fell below historical average.

Private equity firms use multiples to understand the price that they are paying for a company relative to a financial metric.

One of the most common valuation multiples is the ratio between EV and EBITDA.

EV is the enterprise value or the total value of a company.

EBITDA is earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization – in other words, the company’s operating income.

Four Nordic IPOs were PE-backed in 2024. 

Two companies were listed in Sweden, while one company was listed in both Norway and Finland, respectively. 

The number of PE-backed IPOs increased from only one in 2023. 

The Energy Sector comprises companies engaged in exploration & production, refining & marketing, and storage & transportation of oil & gas and coal & consumable fuels. It also includes companies that offer oil & gas equipment and services.

The Industrials Sector includes manufacturers and distributors of capital goods such as aerospace & defense, building products, electrical equipment and machinery and companies that offer construction & engineering services. It also includes providers of commercial & professional services including printing, environmental and facilities services, office services & supplies, security & alarm services, human resource & employment services, research & consulting services. It also includes companies that provide transportation services.

Includes both consumer discretionary and consumer staples.

The Consumer Discretionary Sector encompasses those businesses that tend to be the most sensitive to economic cycles. Its manufacturing segment includes automobiles & components, household durable goods, leisure products and textiles & apparel. The services segment includes hotels, restaurants, and other leisure facilities. It also includes distributors and retailers of consumer discretionary products.

The Consumer Staples Sector comprises companies whose businesses are less sensitive to economic cycles. It includes manufacturers and distributors of food, beverages and tobacco and producers of non-durable household goods and personal products. It also includes distributors and retailers of consumer staples products including food & drug retailing companies.

The Health Care Sector includes health care providers & services, companies that manufacture and distribute health care equipment & supplies, and health care technology companies. It also includes companies involved in the research, development, production and marketing of pharmaceuticals and biotechnology products.

The Financials Sector contains companies engaged in banking, financial services, consumer finance, capital markets and insurance activities. It also includes Financial Exchanges & Data and Mortgage REITs.

The Information Technology Sector comprises companies that offer software and information technology services, manufacturers and distributors of technology hardware & equipment such as communications equipment, cellular phones, computers & peripherals, electronic equipment and related instruments, and semiconductors and related equipment & materials.

The Utilities Sector comprises utility companies such as electric, gas and water utilities. It also includes independent power producers & energy traders and companies that engage in generation and distribution of electricity using renewable sources.

Global Industry Classification Sector: Definitions. Source: GICS, processed by Argentum

 Definitions. Source: GICS, processed by Argentum

Private equity firm established in the Hague, Netherlands in 2003. 

Exclusively focus on Enterprise Software in Northwestern Europe and North America. 

Manages around €6 bn in assets under management.

Investing on behalf of over 200 Limited Partners across two fund strategies.

Raised €2.4 bn in a dual fundraising in 2024 in just six months. 

Invested in three Nordic platform companies in 2024 and made seven add-ons.

“Our portfolio is built for resilience”

134 buyout deals were completed in 2024. 

17 percent more deals than in 2023, and on par with the average the last five years.

Buyout funds invested €20.8 bn across these deals.

93 percent increase in the invested amount compared to the average in the previous five years.

The sharp increase in the amount invested was significantly influenced by the Adevinta deal, one of the largest transactions in the Nordics in recent years.

The increase in total number of investments was primarily driven by more activity within the ICT and health care and life science sector.

ICT companies attracted the most investments, with 36 percent of deals.

is not surprised by the overall market conditions of 2024.

–  The market is stable, though not in a boom phase, with variations between sectors, he says and continues:

– The market remains selective and will likely continue to be so for some time.

Nordic buyout deals by half year, 2019H1-2024H2

Develops immunoassays for life science research.

Online classifieds group for sustainable commerce with more than 25 digital marketplaces. 

Permira Advisors, Blackstone, TCV, and General Atlantic

Helps enterprises and organisations to protect their businesses against fire and accidents.

Quality provider of fish health products and services. 

Establishes connections between buyers and sellers of products and services in the construction and building market.

Stirling Square Capital Partners, TA Associates, and Macquarie Capital

Develop and manufacture coating solutions for the protective, decorative, marine, container, industrial and yacht segment.

Ensures the functionality of critical infrastructure. 

Provides financial and accounting services with a focus on digital solutions.

Develops and produces krill-based ingredients for health and nutrition.

Offers digital property management solutions for real estate companies.

Fund	Raised in close (€ million)
EQT Fund X	4,000
Altor Fund VI	3,000
Nordic Capital Evolution II	2,000
Axcel Fund VII	1,300
Verdane Edda III	1,100
FSN Capital Compass Fund I	400
Alder Fund III	279
Celero Fund I	275
Via Equity Fund V	250
Sponsor Capital Fund VI	231

The state of Nordic private equity 2024

6. Buyout fundraising: Fundraising driven by large-cap funds

Six large-cap funds closed in 2024

Top 10 Nordic buyout funds with public closing in 2024

Expectations for 2025

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The state of Nordic private equity 2024

6. Buyout fundraising: Fundraising driven by large-cap funds

Six large-cap funds closed in 2024

Top 10 Nordic buyout funds with public closing4 in 2024

Expectations for 2025

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Top 10 Nordic buyout funds with public closing in 2024