January 28, 2025
Following the release of Torys’ annual private equity report, PE Pulse 2025, the report was discussed in Canadian Lawyer and Law360 Canada sharing key highlights and exploring what’s next for the private equity sector.
The report is informed by input from 25 leaders across private equity, infrastructure, secondaries and venture capital funds, as well as institutional investors and other alternative asset managers, who were surveyed by Torys on the year ahead for private markets.
As highlighted in both articles, dealmaking in 2025 looks optimistic, with 72% of survey participants anticipating increased deal activity, and 20% suggesting we may see more buyer-friendly market dynamics.
Many participants predicted that the secondaries and co-investments markets seem poised to outpace 2024 levels. These transactions have gained prominence in recent years and will likely continue to remain in the private market mainstream.
Torys partner and co-head of the firm’s direct investment practice Stefan Stauder told Canadian Lawyer that he was surprised by “the overarchingly positive sentiment” of survey participants’ responses.
However, partner Guy Berman, who co-heads Torys’ direct investment practice with Stefan, suggests this optimism could be a result of the timing of the survey—which was administered after Donald Trump was elected president in the U.S., but before the threat of tariffs became a reality.
“The optimism came from the fact that we are back to a lower interest rate environment, inflation seems to be under control, supply chain issues from COVID seem to have worked themselves out,” Guy said.
“During COVID, our clients found it was really difficult in some cases to look at the last couple of years’ of financial data when trying to extrapolate and come up with a valuation.
“We've now had a couple of years post-COVID where financial statements have begun to normalize, and so our clients could have a lot more conviction on their investment thesis and price,” Guy added.
Despite these optimistic predictions, several factors could alter the course for the year, the report says, including the Trump administration and Canada’s own upcoming federal election.
“Uncertainty is never a dealmaker’s friend, and that is now the footnote with which the [Pulse] report should be read,” Stefan said.
“We have to deal with—on both sides of the border—tariffs, retaliatory tariffs, whatever that may mean for businesses, inflation, potentially not further sinking interest rates. All of that is a question mark we all need to try to whittle down over the ensuing weeks.”
In response to recent challenges affecting private equity over the last several years, Torys’ PE Pulse reports suggests the sector is recalibrating—with continued creativity and resourcefulness expected to be shown by leaders as they get deals over the finish line in an active year of dealmaking.
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