Scope. How the industry evolved from Georges Doriot's American Research and Development (1946) to a ~$13–15 trillion (reported, broad "private markets" definition) asset class spanning buyouts, credit, infrastructure, real estate, secondaries, insurance balance sheets and retail evergreen funds — and the lessons each era taught.
What the study covers
- 1The arc in one table
- 2Origins (1946–1975)
- 3The first LBO boom (1976–1989)
- 4Rebuild and institutionalisation (1990–2002)
- 5The golden age and the mega-buyouts (2003–2007)
- 6GFC and the 2010s: from funds to platforms
- 7The rate shock and DPI drought (2022–2024)
- 8and beyond: private wealth, convergence, and the question of liquidity
- 9Recurring patterns across 80 years
- 10How an expert thinks about it