December 30, 2025
Creating value through a disciplined investment strategy
2025 was a transformational year for BCI Private Equity, as the team refined its strategic focus, leaned further into high‑conviction direct investing opportunities, and continued to build out its in‑house value‑creation capabilities – demonstrating the strength of its platform, the depth of its partnerships, and its disciplined approach to investing more than $34 billion under management.
In today’s private equity landscape, generating strong, sustainable returns increasingly depends on active ownership and operational value creation, rather than traditional reliance on balance sheet structuring. Reflecting this shift, direct investments became a larger focus of our private equity strategy – and now represent approximately 45 per cent of the portfolio, growing from $1.7 billion less than a decade ago to more than $16 billion in 2025.
With sector specialization across business services, consumer, financial services, healthcare, industrials, TMT, and venture & growth, Private Equity deployed $2.4 billion across 15 new direct investments in 2025, in addition to ongoing fund commitments. Key direct investments that closed during the year include Pave America, BroadStreet Partners, and Yinson Production.
We also advanced a focused strategy in GP partner‑led continuation vehicles (CVs) backed by proven, high‑conviction managers, completing four new or rolled‑over CV investments this year. This disciplined strategy allows Private Equity to maintain exposure to high‑performing assets, or gain access to new opportunities with robust growth expectations.
BCI Private Equity also grew its global footprint in 2025 by establishing London as its dedicated European hub, adding local investment professionals to originate, execute, and manage opportunities across the region. The expanded team deepens BCI’s access to European deal flow, reinforces long‑standing GP relationships, and supports the program’s strategy of disciplined, high‑conviction investing in global private markets.
Collectively, these actions deepened Private Equity’s geographic diversification, with approximately $13.2 billion of the portfolio now invested in Europe. The team also partnered with five new high-calibre GP co‑investors, underscoring BCI’s expanding global presence and growing capabilities in private markets.
“This year underscored the importance of being selective, global, and disciplined in how we deploy capital,” said Jim Pittman, Executive Vice President & Global Head, Private Equity. “With a larger share of our program in direct investments, a growing in-house value creation team, and a stronger foothold in Europe, we’re better placed than ever to partner with leading businesses and support their next stage of growth.”
Alongside new investments, the team continued to actively manage the existing portfolio, generating approximately $2.3 billion in proceeds through secondary transactions and exiting two major positions – Hayfin Capital and Ziply – delivering meaningful value for clients and releasing capital for redeployment.
With a team of more than 80 professionals across Victoria, New York, and London, our Private Equity group continued to expand their value‑creation capabilities during the year. The team works closely with portfolio companies to enhance operations, accelerate digital transformation, and embed sustainability and climate‑related initiatives that drive long‑term resilience and performance. This strength and partnership‑driven approach earned BCI Private Equity industry recognition early in 2025, when the team was named ‘2024 Limited Partner of the Year’ by Private Equity International.
Looking to 2026
In a global private equity market characterized by a gradual rebound in deal activity and a heightened emphasis on operational value creation, BCI Private Equity’s disciplined, high‑conviction strategy has positioned the portfolio well to navigate a more discriminating investing environment. We remain focused on identifying high‑quality opportunities with strong fundamentals and sustainable growth drivers, leveraging an integrated approach that combines investment discipline, operational expertise, and active partnership to pursue high‑impact opportunities and drive long‑term value creation.
