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Scarcely a day passes without news of a bid, a fundraising exercise or a high profile CEO joining a private equity house. But private equity’s activities run far deeper and wider in the world economy and this activity has come at a price, says the FT’s editor, Lionel Barber. This year, private equity has attracted opprobrium from politicians, unions and even public companies which complain that the industry is secretive, unscrupulous and unaccountable.

In a special report published Tuesday, the FT draws on experts from around the world to examine various aspects of the private equity industry. See links below for Martin Wolf’s trenchant commentary - a must-read for anyone seeking a deeper understanding of the subject; Josh Lerner’s pioneering work on private equity’s record; and, among other things, Peter Smith, the FT’s private equity correspondent, and our New York staff have produced a detailed analysis of Blackstone, whose plans for an IPO broke new ground this year.

But first, consider the results of an in-depth poll carried out on the FT’s behalf, which found that for all the extensive publicity about private equity, the industry is poorly understood by the majority of people in Europe’s five biggest economies. This lack of understanding - 62 per cent of people are “not at all familiar” with private equity - comes at a time when the industry’s financial clout and appetite to buy large, well-known businesses has never been greater.

Yet, nearly half the respondents in the FT/Harris poll who said they felt some familiarity with private equity believe it had a “positive impact” on their country, with a further 35 per cent unsure whether it was positive or negative. Spain stood out, with 59 per cent believing that private equity was positive, while the UK was at the other end of the scale at 40 per cent.

Many private equity executives believe the general lack of awareness of the private equity model is making it more difficult to buy companies. The FT poll found that 77 per cent of respondents familiar with private equity across the UK, France, Italy, Spain and Germany felt the industry was not adequately addressing people’s concerns.

On job creation, respondents familiar with private equity were nearly evenly split on whether the industry created more jobs (34 per cent) or destroyed jobs (32 per cent), with the balance not sure. However, excluding Spain, the four remaining countries thought it destroyed more than it created.

There was also an overwhelming feeling that private equity groups should be made more transparent about their performance and that of the companies they own. Across the five countries, 83 per cent felt a need for greater transparency. Of the individual firms with strongest brand recognition, Blackstone scored best followed by KKR, 3i and Apax.

Highlights of the FT’s special report on private equity:

• The recipe for success: Clive Hollick. After 30 years as chief executive of a public company, latterly with United Business Media, Lord Hollick crossed over to the world of private equity, joining KKR as a partner. He tells us why.
• The enigma of private equity: Josh Lerner of Harvard Business School reviews important academic research on private equity’s investment success.
• Limits are put to the test: The FT’s Peter Smith explains the inner workings of an industry that has enjoyed phenomenal growth.
• Comment: Barbarians at the gates - the balance of pros and cons. The FT’s Martin Wolf looks at the arguments for and against private equity
• Adequate reason to believe? The FT’s Francesco Guerrera and James Politi examine what underlines Blackstone’s newfound faith in public markets private equity.
• Reliance on contacts and a preference for corporate partnering: And Peter Smith looks at what makes Blackstone tick, and how long it can sustain its success.
• Lex’s view of private equity accounting: Blackstone’s move to book profits from private equity investments the moment it makes them, via “carried interest”, has some logic but is a problem for investors.
• Life on the other side: The buy-out business offers an escape from tough regulation and shareholder demands but it has pitfalls, as Jeff Clarke, chief executive of Travelport, has discovered, report Francesco Guerrera and James Politi.
• Private equity’s darkest moments: Peter Smith, the FT’s private equity correspondent, reviews the industry’s troughs over recent years.
• Damian Buffini, the bashful buy-out king: A profile of the rising star of European private equity - young and highly skilled, but he will now also be judged in the harsher spotlight of political scrutiny, says the FT’s Peter Smith.
• Comment: Private equity cannot escape the public eye. Can private equity be allowed to continue doing business in private? Surely not, in the light of the huge scale of the transactions now taking place, says the FT’s John Plender.
• FT editorial comment: A need for political nous. Private equity firms should not be deterred from coming further into the public arena by the idea that they will have to behave exactly like quoted companies, says the FT.