The Private Equity Info database recorded 3,123 private equity platform acquisitions in 2025 (notably down from 4,235 in 2024).
1,891 of these 2025 platform acquisitions where in the U.S. or Canada. Of these, we have ranked the top industries of interest, shown in the table below.
Top Industries of Interest for PE in 2025
|
Rank
|
Industry
|
% of PE Deals
|
|
1
|
Construction Services & Engineering
|
15.7%
|
|
2
|
Software
|
13.1%
|
|
3
|
Healthcare
|
11.6%
|
|
4
|
Technology
|
11.5%
|
|
5
|
Manufacturing
|
9.6%
|
|
6
|
Retail / E-Commerce
|
5.3%
|
|
7
|
Finance / Investment
|
5.1%
|
|
8
|
Food & Beverage
|
4.9%
|
|
9
|
Consulting
|
4.6%
|
|
10
|
Artificial Intelligence
|
4.6%
|
More Details
- Construction Services & Engineering includes investments in specialty construction, engineering, infrastructure, and commercial landscaping services, supported by recurring maintenance dynamics.
- Software includes investments in vertical-market and enterprise software solutions spanning compliance, workflow automation, analytics, ERP, and industry-specific applications, supported by recurring subscription revenue.
- Healthcare includes investments across healthcare services, medical technology, life sciences, and pharmaceutical businesses, supported by non-discretionary demand, recurring patient volumes, regulatory complexity, and opportunities for scaled care delivery.
- Technology includes investments in data centers, connectivity infrastructure, managed IT services, cybersecurity, and enterprise technology solutions.
- Manufacturing includes investments in engineered products, specialty materials, and contract manufacturing businesses serving industrial, aerospace, infrastructure, consumer, and specialty end markets.
- Retail / E-Commerce includes investments in specialty retail, consumer brands, fitness and food concepts, and franchised models.
- Finance / Investment includes investments in wealth and asset management, insurance and risk services, payments and fintech platforms, and financial advisory businesses, supported by recurring fee-based revenue, and regulatory complexity.
- Food & Beverage includes investments in branded food and beverage products, foodservice concepts, ingredients, packaging, and pet nutrition businesses, supported by repeat consumer demand, brand loyalty, and scalable manufacturing and distribution models.
- Consulting includes investments in management, advisory, accounting, cybersecurity, human capital, and technology-enabled consulting services, supported by recurring client relationships, specialized expertise, and consolidation opportunities.
- Artificial Intelligence includes investments in AI-native software, data and analytics platforms, automation tools, and applied AI solutions across enterprise, healthcare, financial services, and industrial end markets, supported by embedded workflows, recurring usage, and accelerating adoption of AI-driven decision-making.
Summary
Taken together, the 2025 data highlight a private equity market that is more selective, but still firmly oriented toward sectors with durable demand, recurring revenue, and clear paths to operational scale. Even amid lower overall deal volume, investor interest remains concentrated in industries where complexity, fragmentation, and long-term tailwinds create opportunities for value creation.