Investment consultancy bfinance has highlighted the “continued strength” of private markets, particularly private debt, as institutional investors “hardwire resilience” into portfolios.

The bfinance Quarterly Manager Intelligence and Market Trends report revealed that private markets accounted for 49 per cent of new manager searches in the 12 months to June 2025, demonstrating the asset class’s “central role” in long-term portfolio design through inflation protection and diversification amid public market volatility.

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Private debt remained the largest segment, at 43 per cent of private market searches, driven by allocations to direct lending, asset-backed finance, and capital preservation strategies. 

Infrastructure searches climbed from eight per cent to 17 per cent year-on-year, as institutions sought long-duration, inflation-linked returns.

Bfinance pointed to continued caution among institutional investors as private markets fundraising was 25 per cent below the five-year average in the second quarter.

However, renewed activity in buyouts and real estate “suggests investors are re-engaging where valuations and structural themes are compelling”.

The investment consultancy said the “tilt” toward secondaries, value-add, and asset-backed strategies points to a focus on resilience and inflation protection which, in turn, underscores “a defensive recalibration rather than a return to pre-slowdown risk appetite”. 

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“Institutional portfolios are increasingly tilting toward liquidity, quality, and diversification,” said Oliver Wade, content lead at bfinance. 

“The continued strength of private markets, particularly in infrastructure and private debt, reflects a deliberate effort to hardwire resilience into portfolios. Demand is more targeted and risk-aware, with investors positioning for a world that may be more inflation-prone, less dollar-centric, and less reliant on US market leadership.” 

The US Securities and Exchange Commission’s decision to withdrew 14 proposed rules covering ESG disclosure, cybersecurity, and vendor oversight between March 2022 and November 2023, means operational due diligence “is more critical than ever”, according to bfinance, particularly in private markets and alternative strategies “where governance and transparency standards remain vital”.

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