If You are looking for a way out, don't forget the way you came in. For private-equity firms that want to sell portfolio companies, there are three big exit routes: an initial public offering (ipo), a sale to a trade buyer, or a sale to another private-equity firm (also known as a "secondary buy-out"). Market volatility has led private-equity firms to cancel several ipos this year, among them New Look and Matalan, two British retailers, and Travelport, an American travel company. Sales to trade buyers continue to tick over. But the real activity has been in the secondary market.
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