Company acquisitions through private equity deals fell to their lowest level since 1995 in the last quarter of 2008, clocking in at £994 million, new figures show.

According to data from the Centre for Management Buy-out and Private Equity Research (CMBOR) at Nottingham University Business School, buy-out values for the fourth-quarter of last year have not been at such low levels for 13 years, when buy-out values from the third quarter of 1995 totalled £989 million.

The director of Barclays Private Equity, Christiian Marriott, said that while the first quarter of 2008 was among the strongest on record, market pressure has caused buy-out activities to fall.

He explained that with such changes taking place within a matter of months, it is difficult to determine what the outlook for next year will be.

"Where the market goes from here is anyone's guess. If senior lenders return to the buyout market and business sentiment begins to improve, buy-out activity should increase in first half of 2009, but there is still a lot of uncertainty out there," Mr Marriott said.

CMBOR is supported by Barclays Private Equity and was established at the Nottingham University Business School in 1986.