Oaklins B.V.

What's happening and what's next for the Dutch Private Equity market?

We are delighted to present to you our PE newsletter for the Dutch market in Q1 2024. It includes the latest intelligence on deal flow, valuations, PE fundraisings and debt packages in the Netherlands.

Key highlights:

M&A activity in the Netherlands experienced a slow start of 2024 after a strong Q4 2023. The first quarter of the year started with a total of 216 deals, marking a QoQ decrease of 24%;

Transactions involving PE decreased significantly by 49%, while strategic deals saw a more moderate decline of 15%;

Valuation multiples have remained relatively stable at 8.7x, indicating the consistency of European EV/EBITDA multiples. Over the past year, buyers and sellers have narrowed valuation gaps, incorporating the current status quo into their valuations;

European leveraged loan volume surged to EUR 29.3bn in Q1 2024, marking the busiest quarter since Q2 2021, mostly driven by refinancing deals;

For the remainder of 2024, we anticipate a more positive outlook in M&A activity based on the expected PE exit pressure in combination with an increasing number of companies that are currently in the market or processes that are in the preparation phase today.

Moreover, the report includes an overview of the latest market intelligence reports published by our global sector experts as well as a deep dive into the fast-moving battery sector.