Why private equity is back — and which companies are on the hit list

Until recently, Mo El Gazzar rode the 189 bus with his children every day to drop them off at school in Lisson Grove, north London.

Now his firm owns one of the biggest operators of red buses in the capital. El Gazzar is managing director in London at I Squared Capital, a Miami-based infrastructure fund that last week confirmed the €1.6 billion (£1.4 billion) takeover of rail and bus operator Arriva.

I Squared is pledging to pump a further €2 billion into the business, electrifying its ageing bus fleet, and more money will be available for bolt-on acquisitions.

“There is further capital [we] would deploy in case we want to grow through M&A [mergers and acquisitions],” he said.

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