$190B BlackRock Move, Cinven’s AI Play, PE Value Creation in Volatile Times

Good morning, ! This week we’re digging into value creation as PE’s new core strategy, AI-driven exits heating up the consulting sector, continuation funds taking center stage, and BlackRock’s $190B bet reshaping the future of private credit.

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DATA DIVE

Value Creation Is No Longer a Department — It’s the Business Plan

Private equity has officially moved past financial engineering. In a market of elevated entry multiples, tight credit, and macroeconomic noise, value creation has become the primary source of returns — not a nice-to-have.

Survey data confirms it: Operational efficiency (27%) and pricing strategy (27%) top the list of current levers, followed closely by digital enablement (23%). Consultants also scream what sponsors whisper: Talent alignment is everything.

But here’s the punchline: it’s not about picking one lever — it’s about surgical integration across ops, pricing, tech, and leadership.

Margins matter more than multiples, and resilience beats timing. If your value playbook is still focused on the exit...you’ve already missed it.

Read the Full Report HERE

TREND OF THE WEEK

Crypto Users Nearing the 1 Billion Mark

The global crypto user base is accelerating—fast. According to Statista, the number of crypto users worldwide is projected to reach 900 million by 2025, nearly doubling from 583 million in early 2024 and up more than 170x since 2016.

What began as a fringe asset class has turned into a mainstream financial layer, with adoption curves now resembling those of the early internet. Usage is being driven by rising access to mobile wallets, growing trust in digital assets, and institutional infrastructure catching up.

But here’s the twist: this surge in adoption is happening even as regulatory scrutiny tightens and speculative fervor cools. That suggests a deeper structural integration of crypto rails into payments, remittances, and custody—rather than a repeat of the 2017 retail hype cycle.

Why it matters: For PE and VC investors, crypto isn’t just a “bet on Bitcoin” anymore. It’s a user base that’s compounding, a rails system that’s maturing, and a digital financial infrastructure play that’s finally approaching scale.

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LIQUIDITY CORNER

GPs in Exit Limbo

Private equity managers are trading speed for strategy. With IPO and M&A markets sluggish, 54% of GPs expect trade sales to lead the exit parade in the next 24 months. But don't sleep on the comeback kid: the IPO window is creaking open again, with GPs eyeing at least two listings apiece over the next two years. Meanwhile, continuation funds — once an arcane tool for cherry-picked assets — are now prime time. 40%+ of GPs plan to use them more in the next 24 months. As DPI slows and LP patience thins, the market’s message is clear: if you can’t sell it, extend it. (More)

DEAL OF THE WEEK

Cinven Dials Up AI Ambitions

Cinven is reportedly close to acquiring Paris-based AI and data consultancy Artefact for around €1B, beating out rivals in a hotly contested auction. If closed, it marks a lucrative exit for Ardian, which took Artefact private in 2021.

The deal reflects PE’s escalating appetite for high-growth digital transformation assets. Artefact serves over 1,000 clients, including BNP Paribas, Carrefour, and Unilever, and is riding the AI wave with real-time analytics and cloud-native capabilities.

Cinven’s play isn’t isolated. It follows similar moves into tech infra (Thinkproject, Nitel). If finalized, this becomes another proof point that “consulting is the new SaaS”—at least when infused with machine learning buzzwords and a Paris address. (More)

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PRIVATE CREDIT

BlackRock’s $190B Statement

BlackRock’s acquisition of HPS Investment Partners quietly closed a few weeks ago—but the implications are loud and clear: the world’s largest asset manager is going all-in on private credit.

The deal gives birth to BlackRock Private Financing Solutions (PFS), a $190B platform that blends BlackRock’s $3T public fixed income business with HPS’s private credit empire. HPS, now “a part of BlackRock,” retains its brand and flagship strategies—like Strategic Investment Partners and Core Senior Lending—while gaining access to BlackRock’s scale and client reach.

The timing couldn’t be better. With traditional bank lending still constrained and investor appetite for income high, demand for flexible capital solutions is surging. BlackRock’s move consolidates public and private credit under one roof, creating a one-stop shop for institutional allocators and borrowers navigating a fractured lending environment.

Why it matters: This isn’t just another acquisition—it’s a structural shift. As more credit migrates to capital markets, PFS positions BlackRock as a dominant lender across the spectrum, accelerating the asset manager arms race to reshape the future of credit. (More)

MICROSURVEY

As more teams explore practical AI use cases, we want to understand what’s holding others back.

MACROVIEW

Floating Isn’t a Luxury—It’s Lifesaving

Economists love models. But Colombia and Ecuador just gave us a real-world exhibit. Two oil-heavy economies. One (Colombia) floats. The other (Ecuador) doesn’t. When oil crashed, Colombia let its currency adjust. Ecuador had to torch reserves, jobs, and long-term productivity. The data’s blunt: Fixed regimes push pain into the real economy. Floating? It absorbs the impact of the shock. The bottom line: the world is unpredictable and volatile, so you better be importing flexibility. (More)

THIS WEEK IN HISTORY

Before the EU, There Was BLEU

On July 25, 1921, Belgium and Luxembourg signed the Belgium–Luxembourg Economic Union (BLEU)—a bold experiment in post-WWI economic healing. The pact created a customs union, fixed currency parity, and a joint external tariff strategy. Luxembourg retained sovereignty while handing monetary steering to Belgium. The kicker? This small-scale partnership laid the groundwork for the EU’s economic model, decades before the euro or Schengen were a twinkle in Brussels’ eye. Nearly 100 years later, BLEU still quietly operates under the radar—like a beta version of the European Union that never needed a product relaunch. (More)

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TWEET OF THE WEEK

"The more I lose, the more they believe they can beat me. But believing is not enough, you still have to beat me."

Roger Federer