Private Markets at a Crossroads in 2026

After more than a decade of double-digit growth, with assets under management (AUM) expanding at a 13% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), private markets have yet to emerge from their post-2021 slowdown. Indeed, while global AUM surpassed US$15.3 trillion in 2024, its year-on-year growth rate decelerated significantly from 7% in 2023 to only 2.5% in 2024 (Figure 1). Consequently, forecasts projecting US$30 trillion in AUM by 2030 are unlikely to materialize. Based on the current trajectory, AUM is more likely to hit the US$20 trillion mark, barring a major shift. This scenario seems improbable given current private credit headwinds, a difficult exit environment for private equity, and a declining fundraising curve.

This slowdown coincides with an unfolding concentration of capital among top-tier general partners (GPs). In 2020, the top 7 private equity firms controlled 27% of the pool; now, they hold more than 35%. In terms of total fundraising in 2025, the top five asset managers accounted for 51%, up from 20% in 2020 (Figure 3). The message is clear: limited partners (LPs) are choosing to invest in large aggregators rather than smaller or mid-sized asset managers. This trend seems structural, rather than cyclical.

This shift is also creating a squeeze for software and data vendors in private markets, who now have to face two challenges: a cooling market and a shrinking client base that is no longer willing to spend as much as in 2021, and that is also looking to rely on a single provider rather than accumulating multiple solutions to address different problems.

This has led to the emergence of multi-segment vendors rushing to build end-to-end platforms capable of serving asset managers throughout their investment lifecycle. BlackRock's launch of eFront Insight in February 2026, which combines Preqin's pre-investment data with eFront's post-investment workflows, is one expression of this trend, but it will not be the last.