How Ireland attracts private equity as global investment markets falter
The volume of deal activity indicates that Ireland is holding up well above the global norm.
The world is all rather mad right now and that is impacting the investment market. Yet Ireland has managed to buck the global trend. For all the troubles that seem to be popping up across the map, Ireland is still very attractive to private equity and institutional capital.
Indeed, private equity back buyers are becoming more aggressive in the Irish market while Ireland has become a mix of a target market for cross-border capital and a launchpad for it into the EU.
Ray Egan, director of deals at PwC, says Ireland continues to attract private equity and institutional capital “for reasons that go beyond the usual headlines around stability and EU access”.
“The country offers a pro-business policy environment, a competitive tax regime and a deep pool of well-run, founder-led businesses operating in sectors where they are often market leaders in their specialism but without obvious domestic trade acquirers, making them a natural fit for the PE model.” The longstanding facets that have made Ireland broadly attractive remain in place but the heart of the opportunity lies in the mid-market. There’s a Goldilocks scenario where there’s enough scale for investors to work with alongside plenty of companies with growth potential.
“Ireland has a strong mid-market of deals between €5 million and €250 million which provide a reliable pipeline of investment opportunities for private equity and institutional capital,” says Ronan Shanahan, partner in corporate/M&A at William Fry.
“Ireland's continued ability to deliver high-quality assets and targets that are attractive to these investors is the story of our macro-economic success: a strong and consistent growth rate, stability in business-friendly policy, access to European markets, an English-speaking and well-educated workforce.”
“Ireland continues to punch above its weight as a destination for private equity and institutional investment,” says David Kealy, director of deal advisory at Grant Thornton.
“In 2025, the Irish PE market recorded 137 deals, 34 exits and €1.8 billion in capital invested, with 160 active investors participating, a level of activity that defied the broader global slowdown.”
Private equity backed buyers aren’t simply passive bidders, many of them are entering the Irish market with a heavy focus on acquisition and a desire to scale.
“Private equity-backed buyers have been active in Irish deal processes for many years, but their competitiveness has increased materially in recent periods. Many PE-backed platforms are now under a clear mandate to drive growth through acquisition, using M&A to access new customers, products and markets,” says David Ahern, director of corporate finance at KPMG in Ireland.
“Compared to traditional strategic or trade buyers, PE-backed acquirers are often more flexible, better capitalised for multiple acquisitions and quicker to execute.
"This ability to offer speed, certainty and a clear growth narrative for management teams has made them an increasingly influential presence in competitive Irish deal processes.”
There has also been a growth in the maturity of sellers, with them thinking beyond valuation. This is being recognised by buyers coming in who are embracing more buy-and-build approaches.
“This dynamic is improving valuations, but PE houses are increasingly being judged on the growth and M&A opportunities they can bring to a business,” says Egan.
“Cheque size is not everything, vendors and management teams are placing real weight on a sponsor's ability to support international expansion, buy and build strategies and long-term value creation.”
There is, as ever, the lingering Brexit factor. In this instance, it’s a clear positive for Ireland as being the lone English-speaker EU member state carries real weight. That, combined with the increased credibility of Irish businesses, has made the market more appealing to buyers.
“The rise in cross-border M&A involving Irish businesses is being driven by a combination of Ireland’s deep sector expertise and the increasingly international ambitions of Irish-owned companies,” says Ahern.
“Over many years, Ireland has developed highly skilled talent pools and specialist capabilities across sectors such as technology, life sciences, aviation, engineering, energy transition, and financial services. This depth of expertise has made Irish businesses attractive partners and acquisition targets for international buyers seeking proven know-how and scalable operations.” The scale of overseas buyer involvement in Ireland really can’t be understated, with multiple sectors attracting international interest.
“More than half of Irish deals in 2025 involved overseas buyers, accounting for 15 of the 20 largest deals and 72 per cent of aggregate value,” says Shanahan.
“Ireland's strength in key growth sectors has helped accelerate that trend as international capital looks for high-quality assets in pharma, biotech, technology, energy and aircraft leasing.” The Cork and wider Munster region has been notably represented in this activity with the Carbon Group acquisition last year, by Texas-based specialty chemicals distributor Shrieve Chemical Company, amongst the highest profile. The private equity-backed deal “highlights how Irish businesses with specialist capabilities and strong customer relationships continue to attract cross-border interest,” Ahern notes.
“A number of recent transactions illustrate these trends clearly across both large and mid-sized Irish businesses,” says Ahern. “The engineering sector, in particular, has seen strong investor interest in recent years, with large Munster-based companies that have growing international operations, such as Dornan Engineering and H&MV Engineering, attracting strategic and private equity capital, respectively.” For the Irish market as a whole, these kinds of deals are particularly healthy as it is a national trend rather than one heavily focused on Dublin.
“The Dave Barry Plastics transaction is a standout example,” says Kealy. “This Waterford-based family-owned business designs and manufactures plastic products for cleanroom environments in the pharmaceutical, medical device and biopharmaceutical sectors.
“In August 2025, it was acquired by Ingersoll Rand, the NYSE-listed US industrial group, at a disclosed purchase multiple of approximately 9x 2024 adjusted EBITDA.” For all the uncertainty shaping global markets, Ireland’s ability to deliver quality assets and consistent growth is keeping it firmly on investors’ radar.
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