Dominique Senequier

The largest private equity firm run by a woman got bigger this year. France’s Ardian, also the largest private equity firm in Europe, increased its assets under management by 4%, to $100 billion, and has been expanding rapidly. In June, it raised an industry-record $19 billion to buy secondary stakes in other private equity funds, and in September, it raised another $2.4 billion to expand its investments in European midsize firms. Senequier, who founded Axa’s private equity arm in 1996 and spun it out as Ardian in 2013, now oversees 700 employees globally, who collectively own a majority of the firm. This year Ardian also introduced an additional initiative to measure the sustainability efforts of its portfolio companies and to track their progress in areas relating to climate change, diversity, profit sharing, and ethical governance.