In April (and possibly May), the French public will vote in the 2012 presidential election – and at press time, incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy was widely tipped to be defeated by Socialist challenger François Hollande. The impact on France’s buyout industry, one of continental Europe’s most mature and traditionally its most active, could be enormous.
The enemy within?
The prospect of the first Socialist president for 24 years, coupled with continuing uncertainty over the fate of the euro, has led to a marked slowdown in French private equity, writes Oliver Smiddy.
