KKR Prepares for Test of Credit Markets

Kolhberg Kravis Roberts is pushing forward with some of the biggest deals in US history, but the iconic buyout firm finds itself under unprecedented scrutiny. Analysts say the huge deals KKR has pending will be a test of the struggling credit markets, the Washington Post reports: If they don't go through, the age of private equity may be over.

Pending deals for TXU and First Data loom as bellwethers for KKR. One insider tells the Wall Street Journal First Data is "the canary in the coal mine. If it gets done, then another $350 billion is doable. But if not, then the whole market may plunge, and the rest of the capital markets will react badly." (More KKR stories.)