Alternative Investment Fundraising Surges Toward $200B Record
Alternative investment fundraising totaled approximately $130.9 billion through August, according to The Stanger Market Pulse by Robert A. Stanger & Company, Inc. Public non-traded business development companies (BDCs) led the way with $30.9 billion, followed by private placements such as infrastructure and private equity at $27.2 billion, interval funds at $25.4 billion, public offering closed-end tender offer funds at $16.4 billion, and private offering BDCs at $11.0 billion.
Fundraising in public non-traded BDCs is up 31.1% compared to the same period last year, while public non-traded REIT capital formation has declined 7.3%, drawing just $3.9 billion. Kevin T. Gannon, Chairman of Robert A. Stanger & Co., noted, “With our expanded coverage of closed-end funds, including both public and private tender offer funds, our analysis of the alternative investment fundraising landscape forecasts $200 billion of retail investor fundraising in 2025—an all-time high since Stanger began tracking alternative products.”
The survey tracks a broad set of retail-distributed alternative investments including non-traded REITs, BDCs, interval funds, non-traded preferred stock, Delaware statutory trusts, opportunity zones, and other private placements. Top sponsors year-to-date include Blackstone ($18.8 billion), Cliffwater ($11.4 billion), KKR ($10.7 billion), Ares Management ($10.1 billion), and Blue Owl Capital ($9.6 billion), according to Randy Sweetman, executive managing director of Robert A. Stanger & Co.