Private Equity as Canary in a Coal Mine: Building the Ecosystem for Effective Global Financial Integration

A burgeoning private equity (PE) industry provides investment capital to build the capacity of an economy for innovation and entrepreneurial growth. The authors argue that for PE to contribute to this capacity building requires effective systems for allocation of financial capital to the private sector and an ecosystem of supportive organizations. To illustrate these claims, they review the recent history of PE in the MENA region to contrast the PE industry in MENA, which stagnated after the financial crisis, with the industry in Turkey, which recovered quickly from a brief pause after the crisis and has thrived since 2008.