Private Markets Titans Fight Back in Court of Public Opinion

Private capital’s problems are more perception than reality.

Executives returned to that claim repeatedly this week, as they gathered in Berlin for SuperReturn, the leading European conference for the $11 trillion private equity and private credit industries.

Artificial intelligence won’t demolish the software industry, so beloved of private equity firms and direct lenders. Individual investors are heading for the exits anticipating problems that don’t exist. And breathless media coverage about the resultant withdrawal curbs is making it all worse, they argued.

But tensions were also clear, reflecting the many real-world pressures facing buyout firms, credit funds and their investors. ...