CFO Forum 2026

Private equity and venture capital fundraising faces ongoing challenges amid persistent market volatility and macro uncertainty. Invest Europe activity data shows that investor commitments picked up modestly to €54 billion in the first half of 2025 from the previous six-month period, yet remain well below recent trends. Against this backdrop, we investigate the underlying dynamics in today’s constrained fundraising market. Beyond their headline performance, how can GPs differentiate themselves to attract investors? And how can CFO and COOs actively support fundraising success?

AI processes and practices are sweeping across the private equity and venture capital industry. A huge 94% of GPs questioned for Invest Europe’s 2025 Sentiment Survey planned more attention on work practices supported by AI, while around half expected AI to be a differentiator on the fundraising markets. We look at how AI innovation is really reshaping private markets’ front office activities. How are LPs assessing and rating GPs’ AI maturity and capabilities? What are the risks and opportunities for managers of different segments and sizes? And how can they turn this fast-moving technology to their advantage and stand out from the crowd?

Fragile market conditions and a tense geopolitical environment continue to weigh on traditional exit routes. Divestment activity contracted to €14 billion in the first half of 2025, Invest Europe data shows, with valuation multiples impacted regardless of the underlying health and performance of portfolio companies. While sentiment around exits is improving, alternative routes to liquidity, ranging from continuation funds to preferred equity, are presenting new options and considerations for managers and investors. When should CFOs and COOs pursue alternative exit strategies and how can they be presented to LPs as a value-enhancing opportunities? What safeguards are needed to protect and satisfy LP interests? How can firms build the operational and data infrastructure to run complex processes without disrupting day‑to‑day portfolio management? And what is the impact of these new liquidity tools on fund economics, carried interest, and alignment between existing and incoming investors?

Peer-to-peer small group, roundtable discussions for experience sharing on key topics:

1. Valuations under scrutiny: frameworks, governance and regulatory expectations

2. Interface between compliance and finance and collaboration between the CFO and CCO – best practices

3. Evergreen and semi-liquid structures: operational and financial implications

4. Digitalisation of fund operations: driving efficiency, data integrity and scalability across the finance function

5. LP Reporting - You can’t always get what you want - but do LPs find they get what they need?

6. Fund financing facilities: optimisation, risks and market evolution

7. AI in the finance function: best practices, implementation pitfalls and lessons learned from early adopters

As the private markets industry evolves and expands, mid-market managers are increasingly branching out across strategies and markets. Our panel discusses how GPs can build scalable fund architectures that can take them from single-fund setups to multi-strategy and geography platforms without losing coherence or focus, and looks into practical-yet-efficient approaches to cross-border structuring. We also investigate how GPs can accommodate LP requests for customised investment approaches, and ask how CFOs and COOs can support broader, more varied, and more complex GP strategies without impacting lean and agile investment and operations teams.