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

Nonetheless, the quick collapse of the private equity proposal demonstrates that even a dominant FIFA president cannot override unified resistance from soccer’s most influential stakeholders. — Clemente Lisi, Forbes.com, 1 Aug. 2026

Of the millions of claims being filed, the majority are being brought by a small number of physician groups, many of which are owned by private equity firms. — Lisa Jarvis, Mercury News, 1 Aug. 2026

The European soccer body UEFA and its national associations agreed to boycott all FIFA competitions in protest of a plan to sell World Cup stakes to private equity investors. — Daniela Suarez, NBC news, 31 July 2026

Throughout the 1900s, in North America, many major sports leagues forbade private equity deals, leaving ownership to wealthy individuals and families. — Allie Garfinkle, Fortune, 31 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1959, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for private equity

• inequity