There are two ways to look at the fact most private equity executives expect lower returns in the next year, according to a new survey by Financial News Online. On the one hand, they would know, and it makes all the people ponying up for more funds look a bit less than savvy. This could lead to severe investor angst. On the other hand, the new commitments could be seen as a multi-year bet. People are willing to live with a down 2008 as long as 2009 and beyond returns to expectations. I'm not sure what to believe. It seems premature to say the era of huge buyouts is over. We'll see some deals, but the financing isn't there for a whole lot of them. Venture capital may see some renewed interest in all this.  

For more:
- here's a Financial News Online article

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