Private equity firms closed a total of $592 billion in deal value in 2020, up 8% from 2019 and 7% higher than the five-year average of $555 billion, said the latest global private equity report by Bain & Co.

According to the report, the number of deals was down 24% in 2020 from a year earlier, it said.

"Covid did have a pronounced negative impact on the glob