3.13 When PFI was introduced there was no industry in the UK focused on long-term ownership of public sector assets, other than those companies running privatised utilities (where risk is allocated primarily through the regulatory regime rather than through a contractual structure). Construction companies had a natural interest in PFI because of their role in building the underlying asset, but were accustomed to being paid for an asset as it was built and did not then generally have balance sheets capable of supporting significant long-term investments in PFI infrastructure assets. In spite of this they were important providers of equity in early PFI transactions. Many of these companies have since developed investment arms that specialise in managing investments in PFI contracts.
3.14 The Government's PFI programme has stimulated the growth of entities whose business is the ownership and management of PFI infrastructure assets and the provision of the services derived from them. Construction companies still invest in PFI projects, but they now have the ability to sell their investments and use the proceeds to invest in further infrastructure assets. The secondary market in PFI assets provides liquidity, greater market capacity and better pricing.