Private equity firms remained mostly on the fringes of the financial ecosystem after World War II until venture capital began funding America's technological revolution in the 1970s. Today's technology giants, including Apple and Intel, received the funding they needed from Silicon Valley's burgeoning venture capital ecosystem at the time of their founding to grow their businesses. As the industry became more prominent, the amount of capital available multiplied and the size of the average private equity transaction increased.
One study found that companies backed by private equity outperformed their peers in public markets, particularly among companies that had limited capital and those whose investors had access to networks and capital that helped them grow their market share.