September 09, 2025
Private equity is no longer a quiet corner of finance; it has become one of the most dynamic forces shaping industries worldwide. The firms profiled here stand out not just for their assets under management, but for how they deploy capital, build enduring partnerships, and create value beyond the balance sheet. Each captures a different dimension of the private equity landscape, some are global giants fueling digital transformation, while others bring specialized expertise in sectors like energy, healthcare, or business services. Taken together, they offer a snapshot of where private equity is today and a glimpse of where it’s headed. This time, we’re moving beyond geography to spotlight the top private equity firms to watch, the ones setting the pace for the industry’s next chapter.
Overview: Thoma Bravo is one of the world’s largest private equity firms focused exclusively on software and technology. With roots dating back to 1980 and formally established under its current name in 2008, the firm now manages around $150 billion in assets. Historically, Thoma Bravo has completed more than 500 software investments and generated over $275 billion in enterprise value. Operating globally with offices in Chicago, Miami, London, New York, and San Francisco, the firm is widely recognized as the dominant investor in enterprise software.
Focus: Thoma Bravo specializes in enterprise software and tech-enabled services, investing across sectors such as cybersecurity, fintech, healthcare IT, infrastructure, and supply chain technologies. The firm is renowned for its buy-and-build strategy, partnering with management teams to drive operational excellence, accelerate growth, and execute strategic M&A, often holding investments longer than peers to create transformative outcomes.
Overview: Founded in 1984, Hellman & Friedman is one of the world’s leading private equity firms, with offices in San Francisco, New York, and London. The firm manages over $100 billion in assets and has invested in more than 100 companies globally. H&F is recognized for its concentrated portfolio approach, deep partnerships with management teams, and a track record of long-term value creation across multiple market cycles. Its London office bolsters the firm’s presence in Europe and supports investments across major industry sectors.
Focus: H&F specializes in large-scale equity investments in market-leading businesses within sectors like software & technology, financial services, healthcare, consumer & retail, and business services. The firm stresses operational excellence, sustainable growth, and strategic M&A, often holding investments longer than typical PE peers to drive transformative outcomes.
Overview: Founded in 1989, Leonard Green & Partners is a leading U.S.-based private equity firm headquartered in Los Angeles. The firm manages around $75 billion in assets and has executed more than 150 investments through buyouts, go-private transactions, recapitalizations, growth equity, and selective public market positions. LGP partners closely with experienced management teams and often with founders, guided by a collaborative culture rooted in continuity and disciplined strategy.
Focus: LGP concentrates on service-driven sectors including consumer, healthcare, business services, distribution, retail, and industrials. The firm emphasizes operational improvements, free cash flow discipline, and long-term value creation. It also integrates ESG principles into its strategy, having maintained carbon neutrality at the management-company level for several years while promoting sustainability and inclusion.
Overview: Founded in 1990 and headquartered in Chicago, PPM America is a U.S.-based institutional asset manager and a subsidiary of Jackson Financial Inc. The firm manages nearly $75 billion in assets across private equity, commercial real estate, private and structured credit, fixed income, and CLOs. PPM America serves a wide range of institutional clients, with an investment-led culture and a strong emphasis on long-term partnerships and disciplined execution.
Focus: PPM America’s private equity platform is centered on co-investments and fund commitments, primarily targeting North American buyouts and growth equity opportunities. Since 1996, it has raised more than $4 billion across eight co-investment funds, completed over 250 transactions, and partnered with more than 50 private equity sponsors.
Overview: Founded in 1978 and headquartered in New York with a strong presence in London, Clayton, Dubilier & Rice is one of the oldest and most established private equity firms. The firm manages over $80 billion in assets and has invested in nearly 90 companies over its history. CD&R is known for its disciplined investment approach and operationally focused strategy, partnering with management teams to transform businesses and create sustainable value.
Focus: CD&R invests in mid- to large-cap companies across industrials, business services, consumer, healthcare, and technology. The firm emphasizes operational excellence, hands-on value creation, and long-term strategic growth, often bringing in experienced executives and board leadership to help portfolio companies reach their potential.
Overview: Founded in 1968 and based in Boston with offices in London, Menlo Park, Austin, Mumbai, and Hong Kong, TA Associates is one of the oldest and most respected growth-oriented private equity firms. The firm manages around $60 billion in assets and has invested in more than 560 companies globally. TA is recognized for its longevity, global reach, and disciplined growth capital strategies.
Focus: TA Associates invests in profitable, growing companies across five sectors: technology, healthcare, consumer, business services, and financial services. It typically executes buyouts and minority recapitalizations, working closely with management teams to support scalable, long-term growth.
Overview: Founded in 1985 and headquartered in London, Permira is a global investment firm operating as a partnership. It manages over $50 billion in assets across private equity, growth equity, and credit strategies. Since inception, the firm has raised more than 20 buyout and growth equity funds and invested in over 300 companies worldwide. Its London office serves as the central hub for its global operations.
Focus: Permira targets companies in technology, consumer, healthcare, services, and climate solutions. Its strategy centers on partnering with management teams and driving growth through operational improvement, strategic M&A, and tailored credit solutions.
Overview: Founded in 1998 and headquartered in Houston with a London presence, Quantum Capital Group is a global leader in energy-focused private capital. The firm manages around $22 billion in assets and has invested in more than 150 companies across the energy value chain. Its platform includes private equity, structured capital, and venture strategies.
Focus: Quantum invests across oil and gas, energy infrastructure, renewables, decarbonization, and energy technology. The firm emphasizes disciplined value creation, long-term partnerships, and operational rigor.
Overview: Founded in 1974 and headquartered in Boston with additional presence in London, Thomas H. Lee Partners is a growth-oriented private equity firm with around $20 billion in assets under management. Since inception, THL has raised more than $35 billion in equity capital and invested in over 170 companies. It is recognized for its deep expertise in mid-market growth investing and its ability to generate substantial enterprise value across cycles.
Focus: THL focuses on mid-market growth in Healthcare, Financial Technology & Services, and Technology & Business Solutions. The firm works closely with management through its Strategic Resource Group to deliver operational improvement and scalability.
Overview: Founded in 1989 and headquartered in Boston with a presence in London, Abry Partners is a private equity firm with around $15 billion in assets. Over its history, the firm has deployed more than $80 billion of capital across more than 550 transactions. Abry combines decades of specialization in media, communications, business services, and information industries with a disciplined, partnership-driven approach.
Focus: Abry invests in middle-market companies with recurring revenue, high free cash flow, and opportunities for operational and strategic improvement. Its typical equity investments range from $20 million to $200 million, focusing on communications, data centers, managed IT services, government services, healthcare IT, and professional services.
Overview: Founded in 2006 and headquartered in Houston with a presence in London, EMG is a private equity firm specializing in natural resources and energy infrastructure. The firm manages around $13 billion in assets and has returned more than $12 billion to limited partners since inception. EMG is known for its sector expertise and disciplined approach to capital deployment.
Focus: EMG invests between $150 million and $1 billion in upstream, midstream, critical minerals, and energy-related infrastructure. The firm emphasizes technical rigor, particularly subsurface geology, to support value creation, risk mitigation, and alignment with management.
A clear picture emerges across these firms: scale matters, specialization delivers, and operational value creation is the common currency of success. For limited partners, the consistency of sector-focused strategies and strong track records points to which managers are best positioned to perform across market cycles. For general partners, the lesson is the importance of differentiation, those with a distinct edge in technology, healthcare, or energy are finding ways to outpace the competition. For private companies, these firms offer more than capital; they provide networks, expertise, and the ability to accelerate growth on a global stage. And for public companies, the persistent appetite for take-privates highlights how PE continues to shape market dynamics.
The signal for all stakeholders is clear: watch for the firms combining scale with focus, and financial discipline with long-term vision. These are the players setting the pace for private equity’s next chapter and the ones most likely to shape tomorrow’s global economy.
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