Alternative Investing Report - January 31, 2025

*as of 1/30; Sources: S&P, BTC, FTSE, DJRE, 30YM

The alternative asset manager Apollo launched the Apollo Diversified Credit Securitize Fund (ACRED), which will tokenize shares of its existing Apollo Diversified Credit Fund. That fund invests in a diverse array of private credit opportunities, has more than $1.2 billion in AUM, and posted an 11.7% return in 2024. The token will be available to qualifying investors via the Securitize platform and is on the Ethereum, Solana, Ink, Aptos, Avalanche, and Polygon blockchains.

➨ TAKEAWAY: While this offering is only available to accredited investors, this tokenization is another step in the direction of offering access and liquidity to otherwise inaccessible and illiquid asset classes. It is only a matter of time before other firms follow Apollo’s lead and tokenize real-world assets, and eventually offerings such as these will be available to all investors.

Monday February 10 at 12 PM ET - join a briefing covering Elon Musk’s neurotechnology company Neuralink. Vincent’s Slava Rubin and Sacra’s Jan-Erik Asplund will discuss the company’s growth, strengths, challenges, IPO prospects, and much more. Presented by Upmarket.

Global M&A activity rose significantly in 2024, with total volume growing 19% and the estimated deal count hitting the highest level since at least 2014. The North American market saw a 9.8% rise in deal count and 16.4% rise in deal value as economic conditions improved. The IT sector (+46.3%) had the biggest gain in deal value while Energy (-17.2%) and Healthcare (-16.8%) had the biggest declines.

➨ TAKEAWAY: With the strong showing in 2024, and the prospect of a business-friendly administration cutting regulations, there is optimism that 2025 could be even better for the M&A market. Goldman Sachs believes that dealmaking will exceed 10-year averages, and the market is poised for a “dynamic 2025.” More exits in 2025 could be a boon for venture capital and private equity firms who have struggled to find liquidity and return capital to investors.

🤖 Softbank aims to invest in OpenAI: A week after partnering on the AI infrastructure Stargate project, Softbank is in talks to invest up to $25 billion into OpenAI, after committing $500 million in the AI startup’s last funding round.

🎨 Lost Van Gogh?: A painting titled “Elimar” that was bought for $50 at a garage sale could be a long-lost $15 million Vincent Van Gogh work, though it must first be officially attributed by the Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam.

📉 Crypto VC investment falls: Even as crypto prices rose in Q4, VC investment into web3 and blockchain companies declined by 18% compared to Q3, though funding was up 20% year-over-year.

🏢 Office building sales volume up: There were more than $63 billion worth of office building sales in 2024, a 20% bump from 2023, though still well below the pre-pandemic average of $143 billion. The rise in volume is a strong indicator that the market has hit bottom, with investors returning to the sector.

🚀 8VC looking to raise $1 billion: Palantir and Addepar founder (and Smart Humans guest) Joe Lonsdale’s venture firm is seeking $1 billion for its sixth fund, 14% more than it raised for its previous fund.

🏡 Pending home sales decline: Pending home sales fell by 5.5% in December, with all four U.S. regions seeing monthly and year-over-year declines. As pending home sales is a leading indicator, expect actual home sales to show declines in the coming months.

Monday: 🤖 DeepSeek’s new model, 🏡 Existing home sales
Tuesday: 🚀 2024 seed funding, 🚘 Arizona Car Week
Wednesday: 🚀 DeepSeek and VC, 🏡 Housing prices
Thursday: 📊 Fed rate decision, 🎨 Outsider art

Have a great weekend!