About the report: 

Secondaries are nearly as old as private equity itself, but their role has significantly evolved over the years. Once considered a backdoor exit for underperforming assets, today's secondary market is an increasingly sophisticated space offering a range of potential benefits. Existing private equity investors use it to prune their portfolios and manage liquidity. Fund managers can leverage the secondary market to extend ownership of their prime assets and potentially maximise their value. 

This report dives into the current state of the secondary market. It breaks down the key forces shaping this space and the evolving appetite for these investments. It outlines the compelling advantages of secondaries, such as immediate diversification, potentially quicker returns and the opportunity to acquire assets at a discount. 

The report also highlights different transaction types and their complementary traits, essential for building a well-rounded portfolio. Find out more by downloading the full report. 

Key takeaways

• ‍Secondaries continue to rise: Despite strong fundraising for secondaries, the demand for liquidity and portfolio management tools continues to grow, contributing to an attractive buyer’s market. ‍
• ‍Under the hood: GP-led versus LP-led deals: The dynamics driving GP-led and LP-led deals may be similar, but they have different investment characteristics. Find out how these transactions have evolved and what they bring to an investor portfolio. ‍
• ‍Investing in secondaries — the lowdown: Secondaries can provide investors with exposure to more mature portfolios, faster distributions and potentially lower risk than primary fund commitments. We give you an outline of their benefits and risks. ‍‍
• Looking ahead: What’s next for secondaries? Secondaries are still playing catch-up with the broader private markets and could have plenty of scope to continue growing over the coming year and beyond as both supply and demand momentum builds.