EGI holds assets 10–12 years

Mark Sotir, president of Equity Group Investments, said this month that the family-backed firm typically thinks in 10- to 12-year increments when it puts money to work. The comment, made in a CNBC interview published May 15, helps explain why EGI has been buying businesses such as a John Deere dealership, a bluefin tuna fishery and Cross Border Xpress, the pedestrian bridge linking San Diego to Tijuana International Airport. Equity Group Investments, the private investment firm founded by the late Sam Zell in 1968, says it is backed by private capital and focuses on direct and control private investment opportunities. On its website and in a September 2025 presentation, EGI says its longer-term model lets it work with portfolio companies on strategy, operations and growth without the pressure to sell on a standard buyout timetable. (cnbc.com) ### Who is EGI, and why does its holding period stand out? Equity Group Investments was founded in 1968 and is based in Chicago, according to PitchBook and the firm’s own materials. The company says it has shifted over decades from a real estate-heavy portfolio to one focused on operating companies, and its current areas of focus include agribusiness, healthcare, industrials and transportation and logistics. (egizell.com) Mark Sotir told CNBC that EGI tends to hold capital “for a longer duration than most [private equity] firms.” He said that if a firm is “thinking out 10 years, 12 years,” it has to start by choosing industries that are likely to remain durable over that period. ### Why does EGI favor asset-heavy businesses? CNBC reported that EGI’s portfolio includes businesses tied to physical assets and older-economy industries. (egizell.com) Sotir said those sectors are less exposed to disruption from artificial intelligence and other technologies than some software and startup markets. Sotir told CNBC that asset-heavy businesses can be attractive partly because many traditional private equity firms want to buy and sell within three to seven years. (cnbc.com) That shorter timetable can deter some buyers from businesses that require more patience, creating room for family-backed investors to buy at lower valuations, he said. ### How is that different from a standard private equity playbook? EGI’s September 2025 presentation says the firm has “no pressure to deploy capital” and emphasizes “staying power” through economic cycles. The deck also says EGI typically writes equity checks of $40 million to more than $500 million and seeks control or governance-heavy positions rather than minority stakes in crowded auctions. (cnbc.com) PitchBook describes EGI as a family office and private equity investor with 94 investments and 61 exits. That mix helps explain why the firm can resemble a buyout shop in structure while using family capital to hold assets longer than a traditional fund would. That characterization is an inference based on PitchBook’s classification and EGI’s own description of its capital base and investment style. (egizell.com) ### What kinds of companies has EGI been buying? PitchBook lists recent EGI investments including Sulphurnet, Baja Marine Foods, Pasha Logistics and CIT Trucks. CNBC separately reported that EGI owns a John Deere dealership, a bluefin tuna fishery and Cross Border Xpress. EGI says it avoids “crowds and competition” and early-stage development risk. (egizell.com) Sotir told CNBC that the firm shies away from some tech and startup deals because it is harder to predict where software markets will be in 10 years. ### What should readers watch next? PitchBook says EGI’s most recent listed investment was Sulphurnet on Oct. 1, 2025, and its latest listed exit was Cross Border Xpress on Nov. 17, 2025. (cnbc.com) Any new deal disclosures from EGI or comments from Sotir would be the next public markers of whether the firm is continuing the same long-hold, asset-heavy strategy in 2026. (pitchbook.com)