Blackstone Inc.'s secondaries business reached $100 billion of assets under management in the first quarter, placing it among the largest buyers in the secondhand market for private fund stakes.
On a call with analysts to review the firm's first-quarter results, Blackstone President Jon Gray said the firm's flagship secondaries fund added $6 billion of new commitments during the quarter, bringing total capital raised for that fund to $11 billion.
The secondaries arm, known as Strategic Partners and led by Verdun Perry, has completed more than 2,350 transactions. The unit acquires portfolios sold by clients of private fund managers and also participates in secondaries transactions that are initiated by those managers.
Strategic Partners was active in one of last year’s largest documented secondary sales when it purchased a $5 billion portfolio of private equity holdings from the New York pension system. Separately, the $22.2 billion Strategic Partners VIII fund produced an internal rate of return of 18% as of March.
Market dynamics have supported growth in the secondaries market. Jefferies Financial Group reported that overall secondaries volume increased by 48% since 2024, reaching $240 billion last year.
Industry participants have faced a higher-rate environment that has slowed dealmaking and fundraising across private markets. That pressure has encouraged managers to use continuation funds to hold assets for longer periods while enabling the return of capital or profits to existing investors. At the same time, clients of private funds have turned to the secondaries market to obtain liquidity even when their investments have not generated realized profits.
Context and implications
The Strategic Partners milestone underscores the scale of institutional activity in the secondary market for private assets. Continued inflows to flagship secondaries vehicles and demonstrated performance from recent vintages signal investor demand for access to mature private holdings and structured liquidity solutions. The growth in market volume alongside a shift toward continuation strategies reflects adaptations by managers and limited partners to a slower fundraising environment.