Private Markets in 2026: what are the key trends to look out for?
Once a year, in December, we ask a handful of Private Market firms for their thoughts on the upcoming year. Our aim is to give investors a ‘view from the ground’ on a number of key questions such as:
How are Private Markets likely to perform relative to public markets? What might be the key macro or policy themes next year? Which Private Market segments or geographies could be most interesting from a risk-return perspective?
If you don’t already know, Private Markets are a large category of investable assets that are not traded or quoted on a stock exchange. They encompass Private Equity, Private Credit, infrastructure and other real assets (see here for more information).
Below you’ll find concise views from five top Private Market managers – Ares, Apollo, EQT, Brookfield and Schroders – on the outlook as we head into 2026. For the sake of brevity, we’ve sometimes summarised their views in our own words.
Please note: these contributions represent the managers’ views and not necessarily those of Wealth Club – you should form your own. Their views are not financial advice nor a personal recommendation to invest. Private market investments are high risk, illiquid, and for investors able to understand the risk and able to afford any losses. If unsure, you should seek advice.
Ares Management
Why 2026 may be the year to rotate into Private Equity
Public equity markets are at record highs around the globe. In the US, the S&P 500 has surged by more than 70% over the past three years, driven by the so-called ‘Magnificent Seven’ tech stocks.
Ares believes some investors may see public markets as fully valued and be keen to lock in gains. In this scenario, it might make sense to rotate to a market that currently offers more attractive valuations.
Private Equity has not seen the soaring valuations that parts of the public markets have experienced in the last couple of years. In Ares’s view, this means investors could still have an attractive entry point into Private Equity.
For those wanting to crystallise gains in the stock market – and willing to trade some liquidity for potentially better valuations – Private Equity may offer a way to stay invested in promising corporate growth stories with significant potential upside.
Apollo Global Management
Private Credit’s rise built on solid fundamentals, not market froth
Private Credit has boomed in recent years, and in Apollo’s view this growth is built on solid foundations. It believes we’re seeing a structural evolution in how economies are financed. Private Markets already represent the bulk of US corporate earnings and jobs. This is not a fad – it’s an enduring shift which will continue into 2026 and beyond.
From a macro standpoint, credit conditions are broadly supportive. Earnings remain solid, the labour market continues to expand, and monetary policy is easing. Deal activity has also picked up, with more M&A and new issuance. For Apollo, this appears to be an attractive backdrop for investors.
That said, not all risk is equal. Some Private Credit segments are overcapitalised or loosely underwritten. Apollo believes it can help mitigate risk by focusing on high-quality assets with strong coverage and conservative loan-to-value ratios.
EQT
Europe becoming a global dealmaking hotspot
After years on the sidelines, Europe is fast becoming a dealmaking hotspot. Europe’s mergers and acquisitions (M&A) market is experiencing the strongest year in a decade – with American buyers leading the charge.
EQT believes that the surge in transactions reflects a fundamental shift in how global investors see Europe. It comes as the continent’s leaders finally tackle concerns that fragmented markets and restrictive merger regulations are preventing domestic firms from achieving the scale of their US or Chinese counterparts.
As a result, foreign buyers are seizing opportunities to diversify away from booming North American markets and snap up undervalued private companies in a politically stable environment.
US investors accounted for almost half of the region’s deal value in Q3 2025, up from over a third the previous quarter. This transatlantic capital flow looks likely to continue in 2026.
Brookfield Asset Management
Building the backbone of AI – a once-in-a-generation opportunity
Brookfield believes Artificial Intelligence (AI) is poised to become the most impactful general-purpose technology in history.
However, for AI to reach its true promise – powering economic growth and breakthroughs across healthcare, finance, science and knowledge – it must be scaled. Two areas hold the key to this expansion: computing capacity and energy.
Evolving from chatbots to artificial general intelligence to potentially super-intelligence will rely on physical infrastructure that is capital-intensive and technologically complex. Much of the heavy lifting will need to be done by specialist private infrastructure firms.
Brookfield estimates that spending on AI-related infrastructure will exceed $1 trillion this decade, and $7 trillion in the next 10 years. For investors, it’s a once-in-a-generation chance to back the companies building the digital backbone of the future – one with the potential to reshape economies, drive innovation and deliver attractive returns.
Schroders Capital Investments
Small and mid-market buyouts may offer growth and resilience
Against a complex external backdrop, Schroders believes that the best opportunities for Private Equity investors will be found in the small and mid-market.
Historically, small and mid-market buyouts have delivered some of the highest returns in Private Equity. This has happened across market cycles due to several enduring advantages over large caps.
Such advantages include lower entry valuations, greater potential for transformative growth, more conservative use of leverage and less competition for deals. What’s more, investing in smaller companies whose revenues are mostly domestically sourced could mitigate against further tariff, supply chain and geopolitical turmoil in 2026.
For all these reasons, the small and mid-market buyout segment could offer investors resilience and help them build a more durable Private Equity portfolio.
Free guide: Investing in Private Equity and Private Markets
Get your free guide and find out the main facts, explained clearly and briefly:
- How do Private Equity and Private Markets work?
- Why are they increasingly popular?
- How have they performed – in good times and bad?
- What are the main risks?
- Who could invest – and how?
Wealth Club aims to make it easier for experienced investors to find information on – and apply for – investments. You should base your investment decision on the offer documents and ensure you have read and fully understand them before investing. The information on this webpage is a marketing communication. It is not advice or a personal or research recommendation to buy any of the investments mentioned, nor does it include any opinion as to the present or future value or price of these investments. It does not satisfy legal requirements promoting investment research independence and is thus not subject to prohibitions on dealing ahead of its dissemination.
Alex Davies
Chief Executive
Alex was a board director at Hargreaves Lansdown, where he worked for 15 years. He was responsible for building Hargreaves Lansdown into the biggest direct-to-consumer SIPP provider in the UK with more than 150,000 clients and over £12 billion under management. He is a keen investor with a portfolio of shares, funds, student property, EIS and VCT investments.