There were 84 transactions involving private equity firms during 2024, the same number as in the previous year. In value terms, however, private equity investment in Irish companies surged 523% to €16.4bn – though more than €10bn of that total figure came from a single transaction, Apollo's deal with Intel in relation to the Fab 34 high-volume manufacturing facility, with the Keyword Studios transaction accounting for another €2.5bn given its significant levels of private equity involvement.
The bigger picture demonstrates that international private equity firms continue to see Ireland as an attractive market for dealmaking. While many firms globally struggled with the relatively slow pace of the deal cycle during 2024 – their inability to secure exits at full valuations inhibited their ability to raise new funds and to complete new deals – Ireland remains on the private equity sector's buy lists. Some of the biggest names in global private equity – including Apollo, Blackstone and Starwood – completed cross-border transactions in Ireland last year, along with state-backed funds such as Temasek Holdings and the Qatar Investment Authority.
Indeed, eight of the 20 largest M&A transactions last year involved a private equity investor in one form or another. The sector accounted for five buyouts and three exits. While many private equity firms have been proceeding cautiously over the past 12 months – perhaps taking longer to make final decisions about M&A processes – deals have continued to get done.
It should also be acknowledged that Ireland has its own active domestic private equity sector, with a number of Irish investors also completing transactions last year. One notable example is MML Growth Capital Partners, which sold the Kyte Powertech business to Switzerland's R&S Group. The deal for the industrial company saw MML exit at a reported €250m valuation after four years of ownership.
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