European private equity inflows reached an eight - year high in 2016 – increasing 37 % to € 74.5bn ( $ 81.4bn ) , according to trade association Invest Europe . Sovereign wealth funds invested a further 10%, while family offices and private individuals provided 9%. Pension funds made up 34 % of all funds raised by European managers , while funds of funds accounted for 18 % and insurance companies contributed 12 % . Meanwhile , buyout fundraising rose 70 % to € ##500 in the year and venture capital funding rose 16 % in 2016 to € 6.4bn , up from € 5.5bn the previous year . Invest Europe 's CEO David Collins said : “ This data demonstrates high investor confidence in European private equity in an otherwise low - yield global investment environment . ”
European private equity inflows reached an eight - year high in 2016 – increasing 37 % to € 74.5bn ( $ 81.4bn ) , according to trade association Invest Europe . Pension funds made up 34 % of all funds raised by European managers , while funds of funds accounted for 18 % and insurance companies contributed 12 % . Meanwhile , buyout fundraising rose 70 % to € ##500 in the year and venture capital funding rose 16 % in 2016 to € 6.4bn , up from € 5.5bn the previous year . Invest Europe 's CEO David Collins said : “ This data demonstrates high investor confidence in European private equity in an otherwise low - yield global investment environment . ”