Key Takeaways
- • Only 10 consultants advised on approximately 61% of U.S. pension fund commitments in 2025, according to Dakota data, signaling intensifying concentration in the consultant channel.
- • The U.S. OCIO market grew 16% in 2025 to roughly $2.5 trillion in AUM, and the global OCIO market has tripled from about $1 trillion in 2015 to more than $3.3 trillion by end-2024, per Cerulli Associates.
- • Dakota tracked over 1,800 private market allocations totaling more than $192 billion in 2025, with approximately 87% advised by an investment consultant; Meketa led with 233 mandates.
- • Private equity has become the dominant force behind consultant consolidation, with PE backing from firms including Genstar, TPG, and THL Partners across major deals.
- • Emerging managers face structural barriers from minimum track record requirements, AUM thresholds, and conservative consultant buy-lists.
Summary
Dakota's latest Institutional Landscape Report examines how the institutional investment consulting industry has changed and what those shifts mean for fund managers seeking consultant approval. According to the report, only 10 consultants advised on roughly 61% of U.S. pension fund commitments in 2025, underscoring a high degree of concentration in the channel.
Dakota tracked more than 1,800 private market allocations totaling over $192 billion from pension funds and other large institutional allocators in 2025, with approximately 87% advised by an investment consultant. Meketa led the industry with 233 mandates, followed by Aksia with 146 and StepStone with 126. By dollar volume, Meketa advised on more than $40 billion in commitments, while Albourne, Aksia, StepStone, and Hamilton Lane each advised between $12 billion and $14 billion. Dakota data shows private equity (608 mandates), private credit (314 mandates), and private real estate (256 mandates) received the most consultant attention.
The report identifies the shift from non-discretionary advisory to OCIO models as the most transformative trend of the past decade. In OCIO arrangements, consultants hold full discretionary authority over manager hiring and firing, asset allocation, and rebalancing. Citing Cerulli Associates, the report notes the U.S. OCIO market grew 16% in 2025 to about $2.5 trillion and represents 75% of the global OCIO marketplace. Cerulli projects $1.3 trillion in new inflows from first-time OCIO adopters by 2029, pushing total assets to $5.6 trillion at a 10.6% average annual growth rate. Mercer is the largest OCIO provider with $692 billion in outsourced AUM, followed by Goldman Sachs Asset Management, BlackRock, Russell Investments, and CAPTRUST.
Consolidation is accelerating. Large RIAs such as Hightower, Mariner, and Cerity Partners have acquired institutional consultants and OCIO providers, while private equity firms including Genstar, Lightyear, THL Partners, TA Associates, TPG, and Madison Dearborn have backed much of the wave. The report also highlights RIA aggregators such as CAPTRUST and SageView moving into institutional consulting, and notes that the investments in Cliffwater position firms to meet growing demand for private markets from high-net-worth investors.
For emerging managers, the report notes that minimum track record requirements, AUM thresholds, and the conservatism of consultant buy-lists create significant barriers, requiring patience and deliberate strategy in approaching the consultant channel.
Dakota tracked more than 1,800 private market allocations totaling over $192 billion from pension funds and other large institutional allocators in 2025, with approximately 87% advised by an investment consultant. Meketa led the industry with 233 mandates, followed by Aksia with 146 and StepStone with 126. By dollar volume, Meketa advised on more than $40 billion in commitments, while Albourne, Aksia, StepStone, and Hamilton Lane each advised between $12 billion and $14 billion. Dakota data shows private equity (608 mandates), private credit (314 mandates), and private real estate (256 mandates) received the most consultant attention.
The report identifies the shift from non-discretionary advisory to OCIO models as the most transformative trend of the past decade. In OCIO arrangements, consultants hold full discretionary authority over manager hiring and firing, asset allocation, and rebalancing. Citing Cerulli Associates, the report notes the U.S. OCIO market grew 16% in 2025 to about $2.5 trillion and represents 75% of the global OCIO marketplace. Cerulli projects $1.3 trillion in new inflows from first-time OCIO adopters by 2029, pushing total assets to $5.6 trillion at a 10.6% average annual growth rate. Mercer is the largest OCIO provider with $692 billion in outsourced AUM, followed by Goldman Sachs Asset Management, BlackRock, Russell Investments, and CAPTRUST.
Consolidation is accelerating. Large RIAs such as Hightower, Mariner, and Cerity Partners have acquired institutional consultants and OCIO providers, while private equity firms including Genstar, Lightyear, THL Partners, TA Associates, TPG, and Madison Dearborn have backed much of the wave. The report also highlights RIA aggregators such as CAPTRUST and SageView moving into institutional consulting, and notes that the investments in Cliffwater position firms to meet growing demand for private markets from high-net-worth investors.
For emerging managers, the report notes that minimum track record requirements, AUM thresholds, and the conservatism of consultant buy-lists create significant barriers, requiring patience and deliberate strategy in approaching the consultant channel.
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