Private equity firms based in Europe, Middle East and Africa have been splashing cash in North America in the second quarter of the year, spending €20.8bn of capital across 237 deals, as they look further afield for fresh targets.

The amount spent by general partners across the pond tripled from €6.7bn in Q2 compared to the same period in 2018, according to the latest Private Equity Market Snapshot from S&P Global Market Intelligence. The number of deals also went up from 216.