The self-sale era

Private equity is selling to itself at scale. Buyout firms routed a record share of exits through so-called continuation vehicles in 2025, as weak IPO markets and cautious buyers kept traditional sales out of reach, Financial Times reports.

About one in five PE exits this year used continuation structures, up from roughly 12-13% in 2024. Advisers estimate USD 100-107 bn in assets have moved through these vehicles in 2025 — an annual record — with even large, previously cautious managers such as EQT now planning to use the structure for select holdings.

This isn’t new. As we’ve previously noted, continuation agreements have been on the rise as IPO markets froze and other exit routes narrowed. While global IPOs saw a modest rebound in 9M 2025 — led by Saudi Arabia and other MENA countries — exits in the US and Europe remain patchy, keeping self-sales in play.

Why it works: Continuation agreements let managers return some capital without fully exiting, keeping exposure to assets they still back. One adviser called them a “popular and effective [triple-W] liquidity solution in a stressed exit environment,” with valuations still recovering from 2024 lows.

These vehicles can reset economics on ageing assets, creating fresh fee streams and extending performance upside at a time when full exits remain hard to execute.

Still, some pension funds remain uneasy about conflicts when firms act as both seller and buyer. Bain found nearly two-thirds of PE investors still prefer traditional exits — trade sales or IPOs — even as self-sales become more common.

The values in the table above are listed according to the market position as of 3:30pm IST / 2pm GST.