In the last economic slump, 3i paid a high price for an ill-judged rush to pour money into hundreds of technology start-ups. But this time, Philip Yea, its chief executive since 2004, says the UK's biggest listed private equity group is in better shape.

"It shouldn't be a surprise to anybody that the world is going to get worse," says Mr Yea, a former finance director at Diageo, the drinks group, who joined 3i after a spell at Investcorp, the Bahrain-based private equity company.