Alternative Investing Report - September 26, 2025

*as of 9/25; Sources: S&P, BTC, FTSE, DJRE, 30YM

Secondaries funds raised $70.9 billion in the first half of the year, putting the sector on pace to break the fundraising record of $107.6 billion it set last year. The fund count has fallen, though, with only 29 funds raised compared to 122 last year, as significantly larger funds are being raised. In tandem with the record levels of fundraising comes a record level of secondary sales of private fund stakes.

➨ TAKEAWAY: Total AUM managed by secondaries funds is projected to exceed $1 trillion by 2030, nearly doubling in the next five years. It is clear that the strategy has catapulted from being a niche one to becoming a core part of the private market ecosystem, behind only private equity, private debt, and real assets. As long as PE and VC funds struggle for liquidity, secondaries funds can buy distressed assets at a discount, which is beneficial for the strategy.

New home sales had a surprising surge in August, rising 20.5% monthly and 15.4% from last August, with the median price of homes sold growing 1.9% annually. On the other hand, existing home sales fell 0.2% August, though they are up 1.8% year-over-year and prices are up by a similar 2.0% annually.

➨ TAKEAWAY: Falling mortgage rates helped boost sales of new homes, but that has not shown up in the data for existing homes as of yet, which generally take longer to close. As the supply of new homes slowly dwindles, the price should start moving upwards, but that could hurt their relative affordability compared to existing homes. With mortgage rates forecast to slowly come down to below 6% by the end of 2026, home sales should rise accordingly.

🪙 Crypto market slump: Bitcoin fell below $110,000, Ethereum fell below $4,000, and Solana fell below $200, as the crypto market has lost around 9% of its total value in the past week.

🚀 Data center IPO: Fermi America, the startup that is developing a massive data center in Texas, filed for a public offering that could value it as high as $13.1 billion, despite only launching in January and having no revenue, essentially making it a speculative buy into the data center project.

🏀 Chamberlain jersey: A game-worn Wilt Chamberlain jersey from the 1969 NBA Finals is being auctioned at Sotheby’s next week and could sell for millions - the last comparable jersey sold for $4.9 million in 2023.

🤖 Modular fundraise: The AI software startup announced a $250 million funding round valuing it at $1.6 billion, nearly tripling its last valuation from 2023.

💵 Apollo’s European funds: The asset manager is launching three new evergreen funds aimed at wealthy individual investors in Europe - two private credit funds, and one focused on secondaries and co-investments.

🎬 Jim Henson auction: In November at Julien’s, the company behind the Muppets, Fraggle Rock, The Dark Crystal, and more, is auctioning off memorabilia from its collection for the first time ever.

Monday: 🎨 Karpidas sales, 🚀 Netskope IPO
Tuesday: 🤖 OpenAI & Nvidia, 🏡 Buyer’s market
Wednesday: 🤖 AI fundraises, 💵 Private credit report
Thursday: 🚀 VC performance, 🛹 $1 million skateboard

Have a great weekend!

^{*Not all pre-IPO companies will go public or be acquired, and not all IPOs or acquisitions are or will become successful investments. Securities offered through EquityZen Securities LLC, member FINRA/SIPC. Diversification does not assure a profit or protect against market loss. Securities offered through EquityZen Securities LLC, member FINRA/SIPC.}