How Smart Buyers Create Alpha Without Cheap Debt

Acquiring Minds · Dec 23, 2025 · 25m

For the last 20 years, private equity followed a simple formula: buy with leverage, cut costs, rely on multiple expansion, exit at a higher valuation.

That playbook worked incredibly well.

But it no longer does.

In this episode, I break down why the old private equity model is structurally broken - not just cyclically - and why a new model is emerging. A model where cheap debt doesn’t save you, multiple expansion can’t be assumed, and real value creation matters more than spreadsheets.

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 Why the old private equity playbook is dead and why buy at 8x sell at 12x no longer works…