An annual forum in London dedicated to CFOs, COOs, and compliance heads of private equity fund managers, gathering approximately 300 professionals for plenary sessions, thematic breakouts, peer roundtables, and structured networking across operational and regulatory topics.
The PEI CFO & COO Forum Europe is an annual forum organised by Private Equity International (PEI Group) for chief financial officers, chief operating officers, and compliance and regulatory heads working within private equity fund management firms. The event focuses on operational, financial, and regulatory challenges specific to the GP back and middle office. It is distinct from LP-GP capital formation events: attendees are predominantly GP-side professionals rather than institutional allocators. The 2024 edition took place on 13 and 14 November at Convene 22 Bishopsgate in London.
The forum addresses the operational and regulatory concerns of PE fund management, with thematic breakouts structured around compliance, fund operations, tax, and fund finance. Plenary sessions anchor the agenda, followed by smaller-format breakout groups that allow peer comparison on specific topics. Networking lunches and an evening reception extend informal exchange time, while peer roundtables reserved for CFOs provide a closed-format session alongside the main programme. As of the verification date, no 2026 programme has been published, and the session details, speaker list, and edition theme remain undisclosed.
The forum occupies the late-autumn window of the EMEA private capital events circuit. The 2024 edition ran in mid-November in London, consistent with the circuit's autumn concentration that runs from September through November and anchors heavily in London and Paris. No confirmed dates for the 2026 edition have been published. The event sits in a cluster of operationally focused gatherings that complement the capital-formation-oriented summits earlier in the season.
Attendance is drawn from the GP back and middle office rather than from institutional allocators. The documented populations include:
The 2024 edition drew CFOs from Bridgepoint, Permira, and Cinven, among others, according to information available at verification; the 2026 speaker and attendee list has not been published.
The event is structured around the following components:
The total number of stages, session titles, and any special formats beyond those listed above are not documented for the 2026 edition. The format description above draws from the 2024 edition structure and is subject to change.
Structured peer exchange at this forum takes place primarily through the CFO-only roundtables, which operate as a closed-format session separate from the main plenary and breakout programme. Networking lunches and the evening reception provide unstructured time for bilateral conversations. No pre-scheduled B2B matchmaking system or dedicated networking application has been documented for this event. The relatively small delegate count of approximately 300 supports informal introductions without a formal meeting infrastructure.
The forum is a single-strategy, function-specific gathering aimed at the operational leadership of private equity fund managers, not a generalist LP-GP summit. The content centres on back and middle office challenges: regulatory compliance, fund administration, tax structuring, and fund finance. Capital formation and fundraising are not the primary activities here; peer benchmarking among GP operational teams is.
Several profiles are a poor fit for this event. First, institutional LPs (pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, insurance companies) have no documented role in this forum, which is oriented entirely toward the GP operational function. Second, investment-side GP professionals (deal teams, portfolio management heads) will find little content addressing their day-to-day. Third, emerging managers or first-time fund sponsors with lean operational infrastructure may find the benchmarking discussions calibrated to more established firms, given the 2024 speaker cohort drew from large buyout houses such as Bridgepoint, Permira, and Cinven. Fourth, professionals from infrastructure, real assets, or private credit fund managers may find the content weighted toward buyout-fund operational structures. Fifth, service providers seeking high-volume BD meetings in a structured matchmaking environment will not find that infrastructure here.
The organiser reports approximately 300 delegates. Firms sending attendees are primarily established buyout and private equity fund managers. The 2024 edition included representation from Bridgepoint, Permira, and Cinven at CFO level. Delegate composition by firm size or strategy for the 2026 edition is not publicly disclosed.
No. These are distinct events. The Invest Europe CFO Forum (21 to 22 May 2026, Málaga, Spain) is organised by the industry association Invest Europe and focuses similarly on CFO-level GP professionals, but under a separate brand and structure. The PEI Operating Partners Forum Europe (20 to 21 May 2026, London) addresses a different function within PE firms, namely value creation and portfolio operations teams, and is a separate PEI Group product. The PEI CFO & COO Forum Europe is a standalone annual event in PEI's events portfolio.
The 2024 edition was held at Convene 22 Bishopsgate, a conference and flexible workspace operator located within the 22 Bishopsgate tower in the City of London. The building is one of the tallest in the City and sits at the centre of London's financial district, within walking distance of the principal offices of many large private equity firms, law firms, and fund administrators active in the European market. The format of the venue, with dedicated conference suites alongside informal breakout and reception space, supports the mixed-format structure of plenary, breakout, roundtable, and evening reception that characterises this forum. No venue has been confirmed for the 2026 edition.
PEI Group (Private Equity International) is a commercial media and events company based in the United Kingdom that publishes institutional-grade content across private markets strategies. Its events portfolio spans private equity, private credit, infrastructure, real estate, and related operational functions, running forums and summits across North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific. The CFO & COO Forum Europe is one of several function-specific events in its European calendar, alongside strategy-focused summits. PEI Group's events are positioned as professional intelligence gatherings rather than trade shows, with content-led formats and no exhibition floor in the typical sense. The organiser's founding year and total portfolio size are not disclosed in available documentation.
The PEI CFO & COO Forum Europe occupies a narrow and well-defined position in the circuit: it is one of the few annual events in London explicitly built for the operational leadership of private equity firms rather than for capital allocation or deal sourcing, making it a reference point for GP back-office professionals benchmarking on compliance, fund finance, and regulatory change.
Registration for the PEI CFO & COO Forum Europe is managed through the PEI Group events platform. The event operates an open access model, meaning registration is not restricted to invited participants. Delegate pricing for the 2026 edition has not been publicly disclosed as of the verification date. Historical context suggests the 2024 edition was priced in the range of approximately 1,500 to 2,500 GBP depending on early-bird and standard rates, but this figure is unconfirmed for 2026 and should not be relied upon for budgeting. Sponsorship and service provider participation enquiries are handled by Josh Stoller at PEI Group (joshua.s@pei.group).
No. The event operates on an open registration model. Any qualified professional can register through the PEI events platform, subject to available places and applicable delegate fees. There is no documented invitation-only gate or LP-qualification requirement.
The 2026 dates and venue have not been published as of the verification date (4 May 2026). The 2024 edition took place on 13 and 14 November at Convene 22 Bishopsgate in London. The city of London has historically hosted the event.
Sponsorship and commercial participation enquiries are directed to Joshua Stoller at PEI Group, reachable at joshua.s@pei.group. No sponsor pricing or package details are publicly disclosed.
No dedicated networking application or pre-scheduled B2B matchmaking system has been documented for this event. Peer exchange takes place through the structured roundtable and session format, and through the networking lunches and evening reception built into the programme.
| Official website | https://www.peievents.com/ |
| Register | https://www.peievents.com/ |
| Programme | not disclosed |
| Sponsorship enquiries | joshua.s@pei.group |