Global healthcare private equity broke records in 2025, reaching an estimated $191 billion in deal value, and surpassed the previous 2021 peak, according to a new report from Bain & Co.
“Healthcare private equity delivered a record performance last year as large deals spiked and deal count rose across all tiers, with the biopharma and provider segments leading the way, driven by healthcare IT activity,” Kara Murphy, partner at Bain and co-leader of its healthcare private equity team, said in a Jan. 8 news release. “We also saw a strong rebound in exit value from recent lows, signaling the return of exit activity as sponsors re-launch sale processes for high-conviction assets. The stage is set for an active 2026 due to high levels of dry powder and a growing cohort of sponsor-owned assets reaching the end of their fund lives.”
The dealmaking saw 445 buyouts, the second-highest on record, with major activity in the biopharma and provider segments. Exit value rebounded to $156 billion, up from $54 billion in 2024, as sponsor-to-sponsor transactions prominently returned post-pandemic.
More than 30 sponsor-to-sponsor deals surpassed $1 billion in 2025, with only eight deals of that magnitude in 2024.
From a regional standpoint, North America overcame a second-quarter slowdown with 26 transactions surpassing $1 billion. Europe’s deal value doubled year over year to $59 billion, which was largely driven by biopharma activity. Asia-Pacific also set a record despite a second-quarter slowdown.
Biopharma saw $80 billion in deal value, with provider and related services at $62 billion, healthcare IT investments at $32 billion and medtech at $33 billion.
“We are optimistic about the outlook for healthcare private equity this year, particularly given investor confidence in market fundamentals remained high in the face of headwinds last spring,” Nirad Jain, partner at Bain and co-leader of its healthcare private equity team, said in the release. “Continued strength in public-to-private and carve-out transactions, along with the return of sponsor-to-sponsor activity, also point to ongoing robust activity. Looking ahead, investors will need conviction in their value-creation playbooks to deliver outsized returns as competition for assets remains intense.”
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