In this month's Private Equity & Venture Capital Spotlight, Preqin takes a detailed look at venture capital activity in the emerging economies of Latin America, South Asia, MENA and Sub-Saharan Africa.

M&A deal value continued to decline last year, falling 10% from 2016 and 34% from 2015. Regardless, BCG analysis indicates that 2017 was the fifth year in a row that investors rewarded dealmaking, driving positive returns for acquirers, a major departure from the historical pattern.

In this month's Real Estate Spotlight, Preqin examines how, contrary to wider market trends, PERE retail activity continues to occur.

According to Accenture Strategy research, 40 per cent of executives believe adopting a platform-based business model and engaging in ecosystems of digital partners are very critical to their business success.

According to Deloitte’s global M&A Index, there has been a significant recent increase in major divestment activity, with companies announcing nearly USD 200 billion worth of global divestments in 2016 alone, compared to USD 150 billion in 2014.