Private Equity Titans Tap Sovereign Wealth to Get Deals Done

  • KKR, EQT, Brookfield turn to Middle East funds for financing
  • State-backed investors bankroll some of year’s biggest deals
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Deep-pocketed sovereign funds are deploying billions of dollars to get private equity takeovers across the line, helping grease the wheels of dealmaking in a year when other funding sources are drying up.

KKR & Co., EQT AB and Brookfield all turned to wealthy Persian Gulf countries to stump up a lot of the money for big-ticket deals in recent weeks. Sovereign wealth funds spent a record $17.2 billion on such co-investments in the first half, up 24% from the same period last year, according to data provider Global SWF.