Canadian buyout firms see robust quarter

Toronto: Canadian private equity buyout firms had their strongest three months of the year in the third quarter, boosted by more deals and the $900-million (Dh3.3 billion) sale of Nortel Networks' enterprise unit to Avaya.

According to data put out by the Canadian Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (CVCA) and Thomson Reuters on Thursday, there were 28 disclosed, completed and pending transactions in Canada in the third quarter of 2009, down from 40 in the same period a year ago.

Including the acquisition of Nortel's business unit, the average size of disclosed private equity buyouts in the third quarter was $186.4 million, well above the $73 million average for the first nine months of 2009, but still below the 2008 average deal size of $226.4 million.

Canada's private equity buyout activity has been hit hard by the global economic crisis, with investors hesitant to commit to ventures until they are sure valuations have stabilised.