Taken together, these global and regional dynamics suggest another year of measured but meaningful expansion in private markets, with growth anchored more in long-term secular drivers than in short-term cyclical fluctuations.
As 2026 begins, private assets are showing real, steady momentum. Market conditions feel more constructive than they have for some time, underpinned by strengthening structural forces and a gradually stabilising macro backdrop across key regions, including Asia Pacific (Apac). The powerful convergence of digitalisation, demographic shifts and decarbonisation is widening the opportunity set across private equity, private credit, infrastructure, real estate and natural resources. With borrowing costs easing and valuations adjusting to more sustainable levels, investor confidence has visibly improved, as reflected in rising deal activity and a renewed willingness to deploy capital. Private equity volumes in the US and Europe have rebounded, infrastructure pipelines are expanding, and private credit demand remains resilient despite pockets of caution in certain areas.
In Apac, the outlook is mixed but broadly encouraging. Monetary conditions are easing and sentiment is improving, but the recovery across the region remains incomplete and uneven. While exit activity has shown some resilience, it remains well below the 2021 peak, with private equity exits totalling around US$137 billion ($175 billion) in 2025. Capital deployment and fundraising continue to lag more developed markets, accounting for a small share of global private capital raised. As a result, the region’s private capital landscape remains fragmented and selective, with activity concentrated in a limited number of markets rather than across the region as a whole. Momentum is building across data centres, renewable energy, specialised logistics and multifamily living, particularly in Australia, Japan and Singapore. China presents a more complex picture, shaped by softer domestic conditions and a heavier dependence on policy support. Even so, selective opportunities linked to digital transformation and the energy transition remain compelling.
