private equity

noun

plural private equities

1

: investment in a company that does not trade on a public stock exchange : interest in a private company

… the proportion of the pension fund parked in private equity grew from nearly 21% of the portfolio in 2014 to about 28% earlier this year.

—Alex Baumhardt

—often used before a noun

private equity investments

2

: investment groups that pool the money of investors in order to acquire ownership shares in private companies

Private equity likes to acquire firms with debt, merge some of them together, find efficiencies, expand and then sell the company or go public on the stock market—in hopes of making a profit for investors.

—Kelly Yamanouchi

Examples of private equity in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The same architecture serves the private equity and venture capital firms on the network. — Stephen Messer, Fortune, 29 Oct. 2026

This research has informed federal investigations into the role of private equity in expanding access to medications for addiction treatment. — Yashaswini Singh, The Conversation, 28 Oct. 2026

Fertility startups have proliferated and expanded across the country, undergirded by colossal private equity and venture capital investments seeking returns. — Pooja Yerramilli, STAT, 28 Oct. 2026

Weil has also been a thought leader on the emerging role of private equity in sports, with publications and presentations on the topic. — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 28 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1959, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for private equity

• inequity