Technology

Acceleration of the PE cycle will be key for growth, highlights Dechert report

Published

1 year ago

November 12, 2024

The 2025 Global Private Equity Outlook provides dealmakers with key insights as they look to raise funds, deploy capital, and get back to the deal table over the next twelve months.

60% of respondents globally now offer a co-investment programme. 93% of respondents are at least somewhat likely to consider take-private deals in the next 12 months. 82% of respondents expect secondaries activity levels to remain buoyant or increase in the next two years following 4x growth in the past five years.

LONDON, Nov. 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Dechert LLP, in partnership with Mergermarket, has today announced the release of their 7th annual Global Private Equity Outlook, a comprehensive report into the state of the private equity (PE) market today, and the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead for the industry in 2025.

Overall activity points to a genuine resilience in the PE sector in 2024, despite an increasingly volatile environment, including two years of increased borrowing costs following more than a decade of ultra-low interest rates as well as geopolitical volatility, economic turmoil and industry upheaval.

In volume terms, the first three quarters of 2024 saw 6,792 buyout transactions worldwide, representing just a 1% decrease on the same period in 2023. In value terms, meanwhile, 2024 looks much healthier than 2023 with buyout deals worth $703 billion worldwide in the first three quarters of the year, up 47% on 2023.

“This year’s report highlights the evolving state of the private equity industry. Whilst we have not seen a return to the levels of activity seen in 2021 and early 2022, dealmaking is robust when compared with the pre-pandemic years,” said Chris Field, co-head of Dechert’s private equity practice. “Improving sentiment and reduced uncertainty have laid the foundations for what should be an even stronger 2025.”

Based on responses from senior executives across 100 global PE firms, the key findings from this year’s Global Private Equity Outlook include:

60% of respondents globally now offer a co-investment programme.93% of respondents are at least somewhat likely to consider take-private deals in the next 12 months. 82% of respondents expect secondaries activity levels to remain buoyant or increase in the next two years following 4x growth in the past five years.34% of global respondents are exploring GP-stake divestitures in the next two years.

The report also highlights a number of challenges for firms to overcome. This includes increasing regulation, with 66% of PE firms globally expecting increased scrutiny from antitrust, FDI and other regulatory authorities to have a negative impact on their dealmaking plans over the next 12 months.

Meanwhile, over a quarter (27%) of respondents expect relatively weak economic growth to have the biggest impact on the deal environment over the next 12-18 months, while almost half (46%) cite geopolitical conflict as one of the three biggest impacts on the market over the near term.

Focusing on EMEA, dealmaking has remained consistent, with deal value continuing to increase. Deals in the first three quarters of the year were worth a total of $203.7 billion, up from $119.0 billion over the same period in 2023. What’s more, exit activity is also starting to rise. “The U.S. market has been quicker to recover thus far, with the European market slightly behind. However, with rates falling and models improving, we can now follow the pick-up over the coming months.” Global Managing Partner, Sabina Comis, said.

“The system has been clogged,” adds Field. “Exits haven’t been happening as often because sellers were wanting prices that were too high to work for buyers when they put the numbers into their models; now that rates are reducing, the models start to look better, and the cycle begins to spin again.”

To read the 2025 Global Private Equity Outlook in full, please click here.

Methodology
In July 2024, Mergermarket, on behalf of Dechert LLP, surveyed 100 senior-level executives at PE firms based in North America (45%), EMEA (35%), and Asia-Pacific (20%). In order to qualify for inclusion, the firms all needed to have US$1bn or more in assets under management (AUM) and respondents could not be first-time fund managers.

The survey included a combination of qualitative and quantitative questions, and all interviews were conducted over the telephone by appointment. Results were analysed and collated by Mergermarket, and all responses are anonymised and presented in aggregate.

About Dechert
Dechert is a global law firm that advises asset managers, financial institutions and corporations on issues critical to managing their business and their capital – from high-stakes litigation to complex transactions and regulatory matters. We answer questions that seem unsolvable, develop deal structures that are new to the market and protect clients’ rights in extreme situations. Our nearly 1,000 lawyers across 20 offices globally focus on the financial services, private equity, private credit, real estate, life sciences and technology sectors.

About Dechert’s Global Private Equity Practice
Dechert has been at the forefront of advising private equity firms for almost 40 years. With more than 300 private equity and private investment clients, we have unique insights into how the industry has evolved and where it’s going next. Our globally integrated team of more than 350 private equity lawyers advises private equity, private credit and other alternative asset managers on flexible solutions at every phase of the investment life cycle.

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Technology

eSign.AI Named Sole Electronic Signature Technology Provider for Hong Kong Government’s CorpID Project, Building the Foundation for Digital Signing Infrastructure in Hong Kong

Published

6 hours ago

May 8, 2026

HONG KONG, May 8, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — As Hong Kong’s Digital Corporate Identity Platform (CorpID) counts down to its phased launch, eSign.AI has been appointed as the sole electronic signature vendor in the project, responsible for delivering core digital signing capabilities including digital signatures, certificate management, and signature verification services. CorpID is led by Nexify, a seasoned government systems integrator, as the prime contractor. The platform is expected to launch in phases starting late 2026, with multiple CorpID-based e-government services going live in mid-2027.

CorpID: Government-Grade Digital Identity Infrastructure for Hong Kong Enterprises

The Digital Corporate Identity Platform (CorpID) is an enterprise-level digital services platform launched by the Hong Kong SAR Government, developed under the oversight of the Digital Policy Office (DPO). It is designed to serve as the business equivalent of “iAM Smart,” providing a unified digital identity foundation for Hong Kong enterprises. CorpID’s core mission is to build an integrated digital government infrastructure — offering unified identity authentication, digital signing, form pre-filling, and e-licence storage — replacing paper-heavy, cumbersome traditional processes and enabling smart city development through seamless data connectivity.

The platform is open to companies incorporated under the Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622) and businesses registered under the Business Registration Ordinance (Cap. 310), including sole proprietorships and partnerships. The DPO requires all enterprise-related e-government services to support CorpID within 18 months of launch, and will continue expanding ecosystem coverage through sandbox initiatives, cross-industry identity standard interoperability, and fully online registration processes.

eSign.AI: The Digital Signing Engine Behind CorpID

eSign.AI is an AI-native electronic signature and contract automation platform built for enterprises worldwide, offering a complete signing framework from simple electronic signatures to the highest-level compliant digital signatures — meeting diverse regulatory requirements across industries and jurisdictions.

On the identity verification front, eSign.AI has completed integration with iAM Smart, enabling individual identity verification through Hong Kong’s citizen digital identity system, and providing legally valid digital certificate services for both enterprises and individuals.

Looking ahead, the eSign.AI SaaS platform will be deeply integrated with CorpID, providing enterprise and individual identity verification for Hong Kong businesses, and supporting both electronic and digital signing that complies with Hong Kong’s Electronic Transactions Ordinance — connecting the full digital contracting lifecycle for government and enterprise alike.

Getting Ahead of the AI Era: From eSignGlobal to eSign.AI

The electronic signature industry is undergoing a structural shift from “tooling” to “intelligence.” Market data underscores this acceleration: the AI-powered contract analysis tools market has grown from USD 3.32 billion in 2025 to USD 4.3 billion in 2026, at a CAGR of 29.6%. Signing is just one node in the contract lifecycle — document generation, workflow orchestration, compliance tracking, and post-execution management are all being transformed by AI, and the industry window is closing fast.

In April 2026, the company officially rebranded from eSignGlobal to eSign.AI, completing its strategic transformation from an e-signature tool provider to an AI-native contract automation platform. As the company’s spokesperson noted, this rebrand is not cosmetic — it is an acknowledgment of where the product actually is. Customers were already using eSign.AI to automate workflows that go far beyond the signature itself.

eSign Automation Skill was launched alongside the rebrand — an AI-powered signing automation framework for enterprise workflows that enables complete contract signing through natural language interaction, with no manual intervention required. Whether it is single-party approval, multi-party sequential signing, or large-scale parallel execution, an AI Agent can orchestrate the entire workflow in a single call. All signature initiations and status queries return structured JSON outputs, directly parseable by leading large language models and intelligent workflow systems.

eSign Automation is now available in the OpenClaw ecosystem and supports integration via Claude MCP, ChatGPT, and other leading AI platforms.

By combining AI automation capabilities with CorpID’s government-grade digital identity infrastructure, eSign.AI delivers a complete solution for Hong Kong enterprises — from identity verification to intelligent signing to full workflow automation.

About eSign.AI

eSign.AI (formerly eSignGlobal) is an AI-native electronic signature and contract automation platform built for enterprises worldwide. The platform serves over 100 countries and regions, covering core industries including financial services, manufacturing, real estate, human resources, and healthcare — with 1,500+ scenario applications and 3,000+ ecosystem partners. eSign.AI holds ISO 27001, ISO 27701, and ISO 27018 certifications and supports major regulatory frameworks including the U.S. ESIGN Act / UETA, EU eIDAS, HIPAA, GDPR, and 21 CFR Part 11. Infrastructure is anchored by independent data centers in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Frankfurt, Germany.

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SOURCE eSignGlobal

Technology

The 9th AskGamblers Awards Finalists Announced as Voting Starts

Published

6 hours ago

May 8, 2026

The highly anticipated 9th AskGamblers Awards has officially moved into the voting phase. Following a rigorous selection process, the finalists across 5 premier categories have been revealed: Best Casino, Best New Casino, Best New Slot, Best Sportsbook, Best Provider. Players are invited to cast their votes until 11 June.

BELGRADE, Serbia, May 8, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The voting stage of the 9th annual AskGamblers Awards has officially begun. The list of finalists is announced, and the first votes are already coming in.

Players will have a chance to vote for their favourites until 11 June, when the winners will be announced at the gala ceremony in Belgrade. There’s a total of 5 categories where popular votes are taken into consideration:

Best CasinoBest New CasinoBest SportsbookBest New SlotBest Game Provider

There aren’t any big changes to the voting process compared to last year. The votes from the prominent members of AskGamblers Forum will be counted in as well, while some award winners will be announced directly by the AskGamblers teams.

These include: Best Crypto Casino, Best Partner, and Best Manager categories, while the AskGamblers Superstar Award is expected to be handed to the operator that illustrates the brand values best.

Dijana Radunović, General Manager at AskGamblers, is excited for voting to start: “We’re seeing some familiar contestants, but there are a lot of new names, so it will be exciting to see who comes up on top.”

“We invite players to vote for their favourites! This is a chance for you to speak your mind and support operators and games that shape this industry,” Radunović added.

Before the AskGamblers Awards Ceremony that takes place on 11 June, Charity Night is scheduled for 10 June.

About AskGamblers

AskGamblers.com strives to provide current, objective, and accurate information and guide its users towards a safe gaming experience. The way we deliver our services, from the online casino, sportsbook, slot, and bonus reviews to our trusted Complaint Service, is best described by our motto: ‘Get the truth. Then play.’

For more information about AskGamblers and AskGamblers Awards, please contact dijana.radunovic@g2m.com.

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Technology

SUNMI Wins 2026 Red Dot Design Awards with Five Products, Leading Global Commercial Industrial Design

Published

6 hours ago

May 8, 2026

SINGAPORE, May 8, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The winners of the 2026 German Red Dot Design Award were officially announced. Five of SUNMI Technology’s flagship products won awards: the CPad Business Tablet, CPad PAY, FLEX 3 Interactive Display, the V3 handheld POS Terminal and L3 Industrial PDA. These products stood out with three core design concepts: integration, versatility and human-centricity.

Known as “The Oscars” of global industrial design, the Red Dot Award has strict evaluation criteria covering aesthetics, ergonomics, scenario adaptability and sustainability. SUNMI adheres to original commercial scenario customization, rejecting crudely modified consumer devices. All winning products are originally developed for real commercial scenarios such as cash register, food delivery, industrial inspection and store operations, covering the entire commercial track with high scenario adaptability. Meanwhile, it practices ESG concepts, adopting eco-friendly materials and modular structures to extend equipment service life, reduce consumable consumption, and implement low-carbon and long-term design, which perfectly meets the Red Dot’s sustainability evaluation criteria.

Simplify Complexity: With highly integrated design, SUNMI eliminates the “patchwork feeling” of cluttered devices and tangled cables in traditional commercial scenarios, streamlining store operations and saving space.All-in-One Versatility: Beyond a single tool function, SUNMI’s products achieve flexible transformation through modular and multi-form designs to proactively adapt to changing business needs. The CPad series with modular accessories and FLEX 3’s Lego-style modular design enable multi-scenario application and long-term reuse.Human-Centric Design: Every detail is human-oriented, focusing on real pain points to enhance scenario experience. The L3 Industrial PDA reduces high-frequency work fatigue through scientific weight distribution; the V3 Smart POS Terminal balances large-screen visibility and grip comfort; CPad PAY integrates full-link functions to simplify workflows.

These honors stem from SUNMI’s long-term commitment to a sustainable society, original commercial R&D and ESG. In the future, SUNMI will uphold its core concepts, expand the boundaries of commercial industrial design, and empower global businesses with user-oriented, eco-friendly and high-value products.

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