Adams Street Partners’ 2025 Global Investor Survey Signals Optimism for Private Markets

By: Adams Street Partners, LLC via Business Wire

March 24, 2025 at 09:00 AM EDT

Pent-up demand, AI-driven innovation, and policy shifts create strategic opportunities for investors

Adams Street Partners, LLC, a leading private markets investment management firm, today released its 2025 Global Investor Survey, highlighting optimism among institutional investors and financial advisors regarding private markets. The report captures key insights from global investors, revealing expectations for increased dealmaking, liquidity, and capital deployment in the coming year.

After a period of subdued exit activity and fundraising, respondents believe that private markets are poised for recovery, fueled by pent-up demand for liquidity and an evolving macroeconomic environment. Nearly half (47%) of survey respondents ranked technology and healthcare as the most attractive sectors for private market investments in 2025, while AI-driven innovation is emerging as a critical factor in accelerating capital flows and productivity gains.

Market Conditions Favor Private Markets Growth

“The continued confidence of investors in private markets demonstrates the resilience and adaptability of the asset class,” said Jeff Diehl, Managing Partner & Head of Investments at Adams Street. “As regulatory pressures ease, capital flows strengthen, and AI-driven innovation accelerates, we see a promising investment climate for managers around the world who are well-positioned to identify, access, win, and add value to companies that can serially compound their revenue and value.”

According to the survey, investors increasingly view private markets as a long-term outperformer relative to public markets, citing advantages such as lower volatility, superior governance structures, and stronger alignment between shareholders and executives. 85% of limited partners (LPs) expect private markets to deliver higher returns than public markets over the next decade, despite the strong performance of public equities in recent years.

Key Findings from the 2025 Global Investor Survey:

Dealmaking Revival: Private equity and venture capital deal activity rebounded 25% in 2024,¹ signaling momentum for increased transactions in 2025.

AI-Driven Growth: Venture capital investment in AI startups surged to $131.5 billion, accounting for 36% of all global venture capital dollars in 2024.²

Geopolitical Considerations: Investors highlight US-China tensions (54%), the Ukraine-Russia war (53%), and US political instability (37%) as top concerns influencing capital allocation.

Secondaries Spotlight: Two out of five investors note selling assets into the secondaries market as a top consideration, with continuation vehicles increasingly viewed as a valuable tool.

Trusted Partnerships: Established relationships remain a top priority, with two-thirds of institutional investors planning to raise commitments with existing managers in 2025.

Unlocking Liquidity and Fundraising Potential

Subdued exit activity has weighed on fundraising in recent years, but survey respondents express growing confidence that an increase in dealmaking and liquidity will catalyze new capital commitments. Co-investments, secondaries, and private credit strategies are viewed by respondents as attractive avenues for deploying capital efficiently in a shifting macroeconomic landscape.

“Private market investors are navigating an environment filled with both challenges and opportunities,” said Jeffrey Akers, Partner & Head of Secondary Investments at Adams Street. “Amid ongoing volatility, targeted private markets strategies can provide investors with a number of attractive benefits, such as enhanced diversification while still providing a range of options, such as with respect to liquidity, seniority within the capital structure, and targeted risk-return profiles.”

If liquidity improves and the backlog of exit activity begins to clear, it is anticipated that private markets could exceed $20 trillion in assets under management by 2030, up from $13 trillion today.³ The firm remains committed to identifying differentiated investment opportunities that align with its investors’ long-term objectives.

The report, “2025 Global Investor Survey: Navigating Private Markets,” surveyed 100 institutional investors in the US, Europe, and APAC. They were surveyed on a variety of topics over six weeks leading into 2025. To read the full report, please visit www.adamsstreetpartners.com.

About Adams Street Partners

Adams Street Partners is a global private markets investment manager with investments in more than 30 countries across five continents. The firm is 100% employee-owned and has $62 billion in assets under management across primary, secondary, growth equity, credit, and co-investment strategies. Adams Street strives to generate actionable investment insights across market cycles by drawing on over 50 years of private markets experience, proprietary intelligence, and trusted relationships. Adams Street has offices in Austin, Beijing, Boston, Chicago, London, Menlo Park, Munich, New York, Seoul, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo, and Toronto. Visit www.adamsstreetpartners.com

Important Considerations: This information (the “Paper”) is provided for educational purposes only and is not investment advice or an offer or sale of any security or investment product or investment advice. Offerings are made only pursuant to a private offering memorandum containing important information. Statements in this Paper are made as of the date of this Paper unless stated otherwise, and there is no implication that the information contained herein is correct as of any time subsequent to such date. All information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable and current, but accuracy cannot be guaranteed. References herein to specific sectors, general partners, companies, or investments are not to be considered a recommendation or solicitation for any such sector, general partner, company, or investment. This Paper is not intended to be relied upon as investment advice as the investment situation of individuals is highly dependent on circumstances, which necessarily differ and are subject to change. The contents herein are not to be construed as legal, business, or tax advice, and individuals should consult their own attorney, business advisor, and tax advisor as to legal, business, and tax advice. Past performance is not a guarantee of future results and there can be no guarantee against a loss, including a complete loss, of capital. Certain information contained herein constitutes “forward-looking statements” that may be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend,” “continue,” or “believe” or the negatives thereof or other variations thereon or comparable terminology. Any forward-looking statements included herein are based on Adams Street’s current opinions, assumptions, expectations, beliefs, intentions, estimates or strategies regarding future events, are subject to risks and uncertainties, and are provided for informational purposes only. Actual and future results and trends could differ materially, positively or negatively, from those described or contemplated in such forward-looking statements. Moreover, actual events are difficult to project and often depend upon factors that are beyond the control of Adams Street. No forward-looking statements contained herein constitute a guarantee, promise, projection, forecast or prediction of, or representation as to, the future and actual events may differ materially. Adams Street neither (i) assumes responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of any forward-looking statements, nor (ii) undertakes any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements for any reason after the date hereof. Also, general economic factors, which are not predictable, can have a material impact on the reliability of projections or forward-looking statements. Adams Street Partners, LLC is a US investment adviser governed by applicable US laws, which differ from laws in other jurisdictions.

¹ S&P Global Market Intelligence Private equity, venture capital deal value jumps 25% in 2024, January 14, 2025

² PitchBook, AI startups grabbed a third of global VC dollars in 2024, January 9, 2025

³ Preqin 2025 Private Markets Outlook, September 18, 2024, Page 3

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250324773504/en/

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Adams Street Partners’ 2025 Global Investor Survey Signals Optimism for Private Markets

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