3.6.5Segment

Private Equity & Venture Capital

Private equity sponsors and venture capital firms making equity investments in private companies.

4
Verticals

Overview

Private Equity & Venture Capital covers the sponsors and firms making equity investments in private companies — buyout, growth, and venture managers (Blackstone, KKR, Apollo, Carlyle, Ares, and thousands of smaller funds). They earn management fees on committed capital plus carried interest on gains, against trillions in assets under management.

The largest alternative-asset managers have scaled into diversified platforms spanning PE, credit, real assets, and insurance, and the industry is consolidating through GP-stakes investments, manager M&A, and the push into private wealth. Reported revenue (management fees) vastly understates the AUM and economic footprint.

Market snapshot

Market size
~$46B
Growth
~8.8%CAGR (2017–22, nominal)
Companies
~11,254 firms
Firms by employee count

93.5% of firms have fewer than 20 employees: 10,520 micro-businesses, below most mandates.

The investable universe734 firms with 20+ employees
20–99
46063%
100–499
16122%
500+
11315%

The buyout, growth, and venture managers (Blackstone, KKR, Apollo, Carlyle, Ares, and thousands of smaller funds) earning management fees on committed capital plus carried interest on gains. The reported ~$46B is management-fee revenue and vastly understates the multi-trillion AUM and economic footprint. The biggest managers have scaled into diversified platforms across PE, credit, real assets, and insurance; consolidation runs through GP-stakes deals, manager M&A, and the push into private wealth.

NAICS 523910. U.S. Census Bureau — 2022 Statistics of U.S. Businesses; U.S. Census Bureau — 2022 Economic Census.

Business model & economics

Revenue model

Management fees on committed capital plus carried interest

Key economics

Revenue per firm
$4,070,765
Revenue per employee
$665,124
Employees per firm
5.2
Recurring revenue
High

long-duration fund management fees

EBITDA margin
Strong

scalable fee-and-carry economics

Capex intensity
Low

Characteristics

  • Balanced cost base — payroll is 28% of revenue, leaving room to scale margin without cutting staff
  • Moderate strategic-buyer pool — 113 firms exceed 500 employees; a scaled asset has buyers, but not many
  • Management fees plus carry against trillions in AUM.
  • Largest managers scaled into diversified platforms.
  • Push into private wealth and insurance permanent capital.

NAICS 523910. U.S. Census Bureau — 2022 Statistics of U.S. Businesses; U.S. Census Bureau — 2022 Economic Census.

M&A deal context

Deal activityHigh

Who’s acquiring

  • Alternative-asset managers
  • GP-stakes investors
  • Manager-M&A consolidators

What’s driving deals

  • GP-stakes investment and manager M&A.
  • Diversification across alternative strategies.
  • Expansion into private wealth and insurance capital.

Verticals in this segment

Find Private Equity & Venture Capital acquisition targets

Search Acquisera’s index for companies classified under Private Equity & Venture Capital (3.6.5) and build a targeted deal pipeline.

Search companies