‘Waiting for Godot’ moment in PE spurring secondaries activity – Lazard - PEI Secondaries Investor

Lazard chief executive Peter Orszag said the firm's Lazard CL division is getting a boost from a continued delay in mergers and acquisitions activity, according to a report by PEI Secondaries Investor written by Derek Hall. The article frames the situation as a 'Waiting for Godot' moment in private equity, a reference to prolonged waiting for transactions that repeatedly fail to materialize.

The prolonged slowdown in M&A is driving secondaries activity as private equity sponsors and investors look for liquidity alternatives to traditional exits. Lazard CL, the firm's secondaries-focused unit, is positioned to benefit from this demand. The source material available for this summary is brief, and it does not provide additional figures on transaction volumes, fund sizes, or pricing.

For institutional allocators and alternative-investment professionals, the key takeaway is that continued delays in M&A and exit activity are sustaining demand for secondary transactions as a liquidity tool within private equity.