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Back in April, we took at look at some of the Form ADV data to see how many times a private fund changed auditor. In case you missed it, here is the link to that one.

So, now that the first half of the year is in the books, we decided to take a look at the filings data again but this time from a different perspective – just how many private funds have filed a Form D in H1 this year and what, if anything, can we deduce about the results?

Well, the first thing to note is that, by any measure, the private funds industry seems to remain in good health.  

According to 9AT data, 5,632 Form D filings were submitted to the SEC between January 1st and June 30th this year, good for a total Gross Asset Value (GAV) of $146bn.* Of those, 462 were hedge funds ($5.8bn), 1,563 were private equity funds ($76.1bn), 2,583 were venture capital funds ($27.1bn), and 1,024 were ‘other’ private funds ($37bn).

Table 1: Form D Filings, Jan-Jun 2024, Gross Asset Value, by Type 

*On occasion, filers may put the same GAV on multiple filings for the same product, which can lead to double counting in certain situations

Source: 9AT

At the domicile level, naturally, the United States occupies top spot, but in terms of offshore locations, Cayman is, once again, the most common offshore jurisdiction in the Americas for Form D filings in the US, accounting for 245 of the Form D filings in the first half of the year, followed by Luxembourg (114 filings). Ireland, a popular domicile in Europe for European managers launching a UCITS vehicle, saw only 10 filings in H1.

Table 2: Form D Filings, Jan-June 2024, Number of Filings by Domicile 

Source: 9AT

But what most folks really want to know is who is raising money. And it’s mostly the private equity types.

Of the top 10, 5 are private equity funds, 3 ‘other’ funds, one venture capital fund and one hedge fund*. 41 funds in total are raising $1bn or more.

Table 3: Form D Filings, Jan-June 2024, Largest Filings, Type and Gross Asset Value** 

Source: 9AT

*Filers select the option of their choosing; 9AT does not change the definition in its database, regardless of whether industry participants might consider the fund to be a hedge fund, real estate fund, etc.

**The GAV listed in Table 3 for some funds is an aggregate amount of one or more funds, for example, the onshore and offshore versions of the same fund. We have combined those here, where applicable.

The data is notable, especially given the significant coverage in the trade media around the current fundraising climate. Industry data tracking firms across the board are showing that a significant pull back in allocating to private funds such as hedge funds and private equity is occurring, and industry conferences are replete with panels asking when the fundraising environment might begin to pick up.

We’re not saying that there isn’t a fundraising challenge right now. The prevailing interest rate and the geopolitical environment makes allocating to more liquid fixed income strategies more appealing both in terms of an acceptable yield and a perceived safe haven, and certainly, some private asset classes are struggling to maintain an acceptable spread over the risk-free rate.

But an industry that’s raising $146bn in six months arguably doesn’t show an industry that’s struggling either. Plenty of brand name managers are out there raising capital, and there are plenty of opportunities across a range of asset classes where that capital can be deployed.

What will be interesting is whether the second half of 2024 picks up. The recent court ruling in the United States at the beginning of June, where a group of trade associations banded together to sue the SEC alleging an overreach of authority with regards to the regulator’s Private Fund Adviser rule, has been welcomed in many quarters as a win for the space. All things being equal, it might be expected that a clearer regulatory environment (and a less onerous one) should be a catalyst for managers who have been sitting on the sidelines to now file their Form D and officially get out into the market to raise money.

We’ll have to wait until January 2025 to find out how the market fares in the second half of this year. 

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