Private equity firms invested $5.5bn (€3.7bn) in seven deals involving banks and brokers during the first half of the year, already sealing a full year deal value record, as the distressed nature of the sector increased firms’ appetite for investment, according to a new report.

Deals so far this year include TPG's $2bn capital injection into US bank Washington Mutual as part of a $7bn consortium investment and JC Flowers' two minority investments totalling $1.8bn in Japan's Shinsei Bank.