Where PE, Large Family Offices, and Private Investors Are Leaning (2026 Setup)

Private Equity: deploy + exit pressure, with platform bias
Dry powder remains massive. Pitch Book reported closed-end private capital dry powder at about $4.63T (end of Q2 2025), rising again through 2025—meaning sponsors still have significant capital to put to work.
McKinsey’s 2026 private markets reporting highlights “aging” dry powder (a high share held for two years or more), which typically increases pressure to transact and/or use secondaries and continuation vehicles.
What this means in practice for 2026: larger platform buyouts, heavy add-on acquisition programs, and more creative capital stacks (including private credit) to bridge valuation gaps and speed closing.

Large Family Offices: alternatives stay core; private debt/infrastructure rising
UBS’s Global Family Office Report shows private markets remain a major allocation bucket, with planned shifts often funded by reducing cash and reallocating toward areas like private debt (and select public equities depending on risk posture).
The family office “edge” in 2026 is speed + flexibility: they increasingly pursue direct deals, co-investments, and structured opportunities where certainty and terms can be negotiated quietly.

Private Investors (HNW / accredited): more access, higher dispersion
Access to private markets continues to broaden through advisors, feeder structures, and semi-liquid vehicles—bringing more capital into private equity and private credit strategies. The key reality: outcome dispersion is wide, so manager selection, underwriting standards, and fee drag matter more than ever.

ALS actionable investment themes (high-level)

1. Digital infrastructure + power ecosystem assets (AI compute demand chain)
2. Cybersecurity / data platforms as “control layers”
3. Asset-light service platforms with recurring revenue (mobility, luxury services, specialty operations)
4. Private credit and structured capital solutions for speed + certainty of close
5. Carve-outs and consolidation plays in fragmented industries

Data Attribution & Use Notice

Certain information in this report has been obtained from publicly available sources and third-party market research. While ALS Global believes such sources to be credible, no representation or warranty is made as to their accuracy or completeness. This publication is for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as investment, legal, or transactional advice.