Are regulators doing private equity a favour? During the boom, the lack of anti-trust risk for financial buyers, and their ability to move quickly, supposedly gave them an edge over strategic bidders in auctions.

Now that the private equity world has been turned upside down, regulators are again proving to be helpful in some cases. Last month, demands from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency gave Blackstone an excuse to ditch its agreement to buy Alliance Data Systems. The buy-out group had originally overpaid. The deal is now in the process of being renegotiated. But if Blackstone does agree to complete, it is likely to be done at a lower price.