Key Takeaways
- • Secondary private market deal volume reached $102.23B in H1 2025, a 51% year-over-year surge from $67.71B in H1 2024, marking the highest transaction volume recorded for any half-year period.
- • Full-year 2025 secondaries volume is projected to reach $176.25B based on H1 trends and FY 2024 patterns, indicating sustained momentum in the market.
- • Fund secondaries dominated activity with $59.49B in transactions (56.3% YoY increase), while direct secondaries grew 44.1% to $42.74B, with market participants expecting a near-even split (55.7% fund / 44.3% direct) over the next three years.
- • Leveraged buyout fund purchases led all strategies with $48.52B (up 70% YoY), followed by non-credit private equity transactions posting the sharpest sectoral growth at 64.3%, while energy-focused funds more than doubled at 195.6% growth.
- • Purchased funds averaged 6.76 years in age, indicating a shift toward slightly more mature assets compared with 6.39 years in H1 2024, reflecting evolving LP preferences in secondary acquisitions.
Summary
The secondary private markets experienced unprecedented growth in the first half of 2025, with transaction volume surging to $102.23B—a remarkable 51% increase from $67.71B in the comparable period of 2024, according to new research from Setter Capital. This marks the highest transaction volume recorded for any half-year period in the secondaries market. Based on current H1 trends and FY 2024 patterns, the market is projected to reach $176.25B in full-year 2025 volume, signaling sustained momentum and structural growth in secondary market activity.
Fund secondaries led the market advance, climbing 56.3% year-over-year to $59.49B, while direct secondaries increased at a more measured but still robust 44.1% to $42.74B. Market participants project the sector will maintain a near-even split over the next three years, with fund secondaries representing 55.7% of activity and direct secondaries 44.3%. Within fund strategies, leveraged buyout fund purchases dominated with $48.52B in transaction volume, up 70% from a year earlier. Venture capital funds posted more modest gains of 7% to $2.84B, while credit funds grew 6.9% to $2.11B. Energy-focused funds exhibited explosive growth, more than doubling to $315M, though from a smaller capital base.
Sector-level performance revealed divergent trends across private markets. Non-credit private equity transactions posted the sharpest growth at 64.3% compared with H1 2024, while hedge funds rose 21.3%, infrastructure grew 10.4%, and real estate increased 13.4%. Agriculture and timber strategies recorded a dramatic 268.1% surge, though activity remains concentrated in larger, more established segments. Within real estate, core strategies doubled to $506M, while value-add and opportunistic fund secondaries declined 16.8% and 42.0%, respectively, suggesting a rotational shift in LP capital allocation toward stabilized assets.
A notable development emerged in fund maturity profiles: purchased funds averaged 6.76 years in age during H1 2025, compared with 6.39 years in H1 2024. This shift toward slightly more seasoned assets reflects evolving LP preferences for funds with established track records and performance visibility. Secondary market activity encompassed both full portfolio transactions and single-line interests across multiple vintages, indicating broad-based participation across LPs and market intermediaries.
Fund secondaries led the market advance, climbing 56.3% year-over-year to $59.49B, while direct secondaries increased at a more measured but still robust 44.1% to $42.74B. Market participants project the sector will maintain a near-even split over the next three years, with fund secondaries representing 55.7% of activity and direct secondaries 44.3%. Within fund strategies, leveraged buyout fund purchases dominated with $48.52B in transaction volume, up 70% from a year earlier. Venture capital funds posted more modest gains of 7% to $2.84B, while credit funds grew 6.9% to $2.11B. Energy-focused funds exhibited explosive growth, more than doubling to $315M, though from a smaller capital base.
Sector-level performance revealed divergent trends across private markets. Non-credit private equity transactions posted the sharpest growth at 64.3% compared with H1 2024, while hedge funds rose 21.3%, infrastructure grew 10.4%, and real estate increased 13.4%. Agriculture and timber strategies recorded a dramatic 268.1% surge, though activity remains concentrated in larger, more established segments. Within real estate, core strategies doubled to $506M, while value-add and opportunistic fund secondaries declined 16.8% and 42.0%, respectively, suggesting a rotational shift in LP capital allocation toward stabilized assets.
A notable development emerged in fund maturity profiles: purchased funds averaged 6.76 years in age during H1 2025, compared with 6.39 years in H1 2024. This shift toward slightly more seasoned assets reflects evolving LP preferences for funds with established track records and performance visibility. Secondary market activity encompassed both full portfolio transactions and single-line interests across multiple vintages, indicating broad-based participation across LPs and market intermediaries.
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