Industry Data & Research

Providing comprehensive data and research to support our public affairs and communications efforts – while equipping our members with critical industry insight – remains at the core of the research team’s mission. Throughout 2025, we worked with focus and determination to broaden our portfolio of publications and deepen our research collaborations, further strengthening understanding of the powerful contribution private equity and venture capital make to Europe’s economy and society.

In 2025, the research team marked a major milestone with the release of Invest Europe’s first-ever pan-European infrastructure report, offering a comprehensive view of fundraising, investment, and exit activity across this rapidly growing asset class. Drawing on extensive data, the report highlighted the scale and strategic importance of private capital in supporting Europe’s critical infrastructure. It underscored how private investment is playing an increasingly vital role in advancing Europe’s green and digital transitions, while financing essential projects that strengthen resilience, connectivity, and long-term economic growth across the continent.

This year, our Performance of European Private Equity Benchmark Report, produced in partnership with Cambridge Associates included new analysis showing the last 10 years of realised (or largely realised) funds for buyouts and venture capital, covering the period that included the Global Financial Crisis, to demonstrate that European funds outperformed their domestic benchmarks through intense market volatility and economic disruption and realised strong value creation for investors. We also continued to include a dedicated section on European infrastructure funds. Using mPME methodology, the findings demonstrated how private capital funds consistently outperform public market benchmarks, offering valuable, data-driven insights for long-term investors navigating increasingly complex and uncertain market conditions.

Alongside launching new research, we continued to enhance and expand our established publications. We released the third edition of Invest Europe’s ESG Key Performance Indicators (KPI) report, focusing on ten carefully selected ESG metrics. This report provided transparent data insight into the industry’s progress in areas such as carbon emissions, female participation, and anti-bribery and corruption practices within portfolio companies. Conducted through the European Data Cooperative (EDC), this initiative continues to drive the ambition of making ESG reporting as standard and widespread as the tracking of activity data.