Private Equity Industry Faces Survival Crisis
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: 1 hour ago
0mins
Should l Buy SPGI?
Source: CNBC
- Continued Low Returns: According to a report by Bain & Co, private equity firms returned only about 14% of the capital to investors in 2025, marking the lowest level since the 2008-09 financial crisis, indicating a severe lack of overall return capability in the industry that pressures fund managers to prove their value creation abilities.
- Increased Exit Challenges: The report highlights that the average time to sell businesses has extended from 5-6 years between 2010-2021 to 7 years now, with exit volumes dropping by 2% last year, which not only undermines investor confidence but also intensifies survival pressures on smaller funds.
- Severe Fundraising Environment: In 2025, buyout fundraising fell by 16% year-over-year to $395 billion, with the number of closed funds decreasing by 23%, reflecting weak demand for new funds, particularly impacting smaller and emerging managers who face greater challenges.
- Accelerating Industry Consolidation: As performance gaps widen and capital concentrates among top-tier managers, industry experts predict an acceleration in consolidation, with many smaller funds facing extinction risks, especially if they fail to create value effectively, indicating a
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Analyst Views on SPGI
Wall Street analysts forecast SPGI stock price to rise
15 Analyst Rating
14 Buy
1 Hold
0 Sell
Strong Buy
Current: 423.610
Low
546.00
Averages
617.77
High
675.00
Current: 423.610
Low
546.00
Averages
617.77
High
675.00
About SPGI
S&P Global Inc. provides essential intelligence. Its operations consist of five businesses: S&P Global Market Intelligence (Market Intelligence), S&P Global Ratings (Ratings), S&P Global Commodity Insights (Commodity Insights), S&P Global Mobility (Mobility) and S&P Dow Jones Indices (Indices). Market Intelligence is a global provider of multi-asset-class data and analytics integrated with purpose-built workflow solutions. Ratings is an independent provider of credit ratings, research, and analytics, offering investors and other market participants information, ratings and benchmarks. Commodity Insights is an independent provider of information and benchmark prices for the commodity and energy markets. Mobility is a provider of solutions serving the full automotive value chain, including vehicle manufacturers and retailers. Indices is a global index provider that maintains a variety of valuation and index benchmarks for investment advisors, wealth managers and institutional investors.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
Private Equity Industry Faces Survival Crisis
- Continued Low Returns: According to a report by Bain & Co, private equity firms returned only about 14% of the capital to investors in 2025, marking the lowest level since the 2008-09 financial crisis, indicating a severe lack of overall return capability in the industry that pressures fund managers to prove their value creation abilities.
- Increased Exit Challenges: The report highlights that the average time to sell businesses has extended from 5-6 years between 2010-2021 to 7 years now, with exit volumes dropping by 2% last year, which not only undermines investor confidence but also intensifies survival pressures on smaller funds.
- Severe Fundraising Environment: In 2025, buyout fundraising fell by 16% year-over-year to $395 billion, with the number of closed funds decreasing by 23%, reflecting weak demand for new funds, particularly impacting smaller and emerging managers who face greater challenges.
- Accelerating Industry Consolidation: As performance gaps widen and capital concentrates among top-tier managers, industry experts predict an acceleration in consolidation, with many smaller funds facing extinction risks, especially if they fail to create value effectively, indicating a
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Private Equity Industry Faces Survival Crisis
- Continued Low Returns: According to a report by Bain & Co, private equity firms returned only about 14% of the capital to investors in 2025, marking the lowest level since the 2008-09 financial crisis, indicating a severe lack of overall return capability in the industry that pressures fund managers to prove their value creation abilities.
- Increased Exit Challenges: The report highlights that the average time to sell businesses has extended from 5-6 years between 2010-2021 to 7 years now, with exit volumes dropping by 2% last year, which not only undermines investor confidence but also intensifies survival pressures on smaller funds.
- Severe Fundraising Environment: In 2025, buyout fundraising fell by 16% year-over-year to $395 billion, with the number of closed funds decreasing by 23%, reflecting weak demand for new funds, particularly impacting smaller and emerging managers who face greater challenges.
- Accelerating Industry Consolidation: As performance gaps widen and capital concentrates among top-tier managers, industry experts predict an acceleration in consolidation, with many smaller funds facing extinction risks, especially if they fail to create value effectively, indicating a
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- Key Speaker: U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright will deliver a plenary address, sharing insights on energy policy and the evolving global energy landscape, which is expected to have a significant impact on attendees.
- Innovation Hub: The conference will feature the CERAWeek Innovation Agora, bringing together technologists, entrepreneurs, and investors to showcase transformative technologies in areas such as AI, low-carbon fuels, and cybersecurity, thereby accelerating the transformation of the global energy system.
- Registration Details: CERAWeek 2026 will take place from March 23-27 at the Hilton Americas in Houston, with media registration now open to attract more voices focused on global energy developments.
See More
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- Conference Theme: CERAWeek 2026 will focus on 'Convergence and Competition: Energy, Technology, and Geopolitics,' attracting global energy leaders and policymakers to discuss the intertwining of energy markets with new technologies and its impact on supply chains.
- Key Speaker: U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright will deliver a plenary address, sharing insights on U.S. energy policy and the evolving global energy landscape, which is expected to have a significant impact on attendees.
- Innovation Hub: The conference will feature the CERAWeek Innovation Agora, bringing together technologists, entrepreneurs, and investors to showcase transformational technology platforms in energy and adjacent industries, driving the transformation of the global energy system.
- Registration Details: CERAWeek will be held from March 23-27, 2026, in Houston, with media registration now open, aiming to provide opportunities for media coverage and facilitate information dissemination and exchange.
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Norway's Sovereign Wealth Fund Integrates AI for Investment Risk Monitoring
- AI Technology Adoption: Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM) announced in its 2024 annual report that it has begun using AI to screen for reputational and ethical risks in investments, enhancing its ESG risk monitoring capabilities through the use of Anthropic's Claude AI model.
- Portfolio Monitoring: The fund stated that AI tools can identify potential risks related to forced labor, corruption, or fraud within 24 hours of investment, enabling it to identify and sell high-risk investments before market reactions, thus avoiding potential losses.
- Market Impact: As of 2025, NBIM's asset value stands at approximately $2.2 trillion, with an annual profit of 2.36 trillion kroner (about $246.9 billion), and nearly 40% of its investments are concentrated in U.S. equities, underscoring its significant position in the global market.
- Ethical Framework Review: Following criticism of its ethical decisions last year, Norway's finance minister indicated that NBIM's investment decisions will be subject to temporary guidelines, with a review of the ethical framework planned to ensure transparency and compliance in investment decisions.
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Barron’s Stock Recommendations: Current Status of S&P Global, Boeing, and MSG Sports.
- Revisiting Stock Picks: Analyzing past stock recommendations can uncover new investment opportunities rather than just assessing their historical performance.
- Investment Insights: Old stock calls may provide valuable insights into current market trends and potential future gains.
- Strategic Analysis: Investors can benefit from a strategic review of previous picks to inform their current investment strategies.
- Market Dynamics: Understanding how past selections performed can help investors navigate changing market conditions effectively.
See More
Anthropic Launches New Tool to Support Software Industry
- Product Update: Anthropic's Tuesday event introduced updates to its Claude Cowork tool, enabling connections to platforms like Google Drive, Gmail, and Docusign, thereby enhancing office productivity and demonstrating its additive role to existing software providers.
- Market Reaction: The iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF (IGV) rose nearly 2% during Tuesday's session, recovering from a more than 4% drop on Monday, although the fund remains down 24% in 2026, reflecting the market's mixed sentiment towards AI's impact.
- Industry Analysis: Wells Fargo analyst Jason Haas highlighted that sector-specific data assets are crucial in building AI solutions, with companies like Fair Isaac, Moody's, and S&P Global likely to benefit due to their unique datasets, indicating AI as a tailwind for increased data usage.
- Collaboration Outlook: Analysts suggest that Anthropic's event indicates a willingness to partner with existing software companies rather than replace them, a collaboration model that may be underappreciated by investors, particularly in the information services sector, which could lead to more market opportunities ahead.
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