PE-VC Exit Activity Slumps to $11 Billion, Lowest in Four Years: Equirus Report

The exit activity in the private equity and venture capital (PE-VC) space during the first nine months of calendar year 2025 has softened, with the value of exits dropping to a four-year low of $11 billion, down from $20 billion in 2024, $17 billion in 2023, and $20 billion in 2022. However, according to a report by Equirus Capital on Wednesday, the dominance of block deals and secondary market sales, which account for 52–67 per cent of all exits between 2023 and 2025, demonstrates the continued depth and liquidity of Indian capital markets.

Financials (28 per cent), healthcare (22 per cent), and consumer discretionary (18 per cent) accounted for the majority of exits, reinforcing investor focus on scalable, high-growth sectors in the year till September end.

“The depth of India’s robust and liquid stock markets allows investors multiple exit routes — via IPOs, block deals, strategic sales and fund-to-fund transactions. This flexibility enables better price discovery and reflects the strength of India’s capital markets in supporting entrepreneurial ambition and the vision of a Viksit Bharat,” said Ajay Garg, Managing Director, Equirus group.

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Meanwhile, private equity (PE) and venture capital (VC) investments in India have touched a three-year high of $26 billion, underscoring renewed global confidence in India’s economic trajectory. 

Strong agricultural output, robust monsoons, and a revival in consumer demand during the festive season have created a fertile environment for capital deployment across multiple sectors.

The number of PE-VC deals has also surged, with 1,363 transactions recorded in January–September 2025 compared to 1,170 deals in all of 2024.

“The increased deal value in calendar 2025 is because the proportion of smaller deals of less than $10 million in size have dropped to 40 per cent of total vs 47 per cent in CY 2024, while the percentage of mid-size deals in the range of $10–25 million have risen from 21 per cent in calendar 2024 to 31 per cent in calendar 2025 till date,” said Bhavesh Shah, Managing Director and Head – Investment Banking, Equirus Capital.

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This change in deal composition has lifted the average deal value to $36.6 million in 2025, compared with $34.4 million in 2024, signalling larger and more strategic investments by PE and VC players.

Among sectors, IT and consumer staples have led the sectoral upswing with their share rising to 35 per cent and 13 per cent of total deal value.

“On the other hand, sectors such as financials and healthcare saw their share in total investments in CY 2025 dip over the previous year. While the share of financials in overall PE/VC investments fell from 18% in CY 2024 to 11% in CY 2025, that of healthcare fell from 19% to 7%,” added Shah.