Presented by Antoine Colson

Illiquidity, up until now a fundament feature of private markets, is being reframed. The maturing secondary market is providing a new tool for active management; allowing LPs to sell on a programmatic cadence and recycle capital into better vintages. Does this mean private allocations are moving towards similar treatment as liquid portfolios? What are the consequences for private markets in an allocation? Are there risks to long-term patient capital becoming more impatient?

As companies stay private for longer and liquidity solutions evolve, how do investment offices adopt the right approach to asset allocation? What role do private markets now play? Do ongoing rolling shocks demand a more agile approach?

The case for being bolder and more creative with GP relationships. LPs trend towards fewer, deeper partnerships with their managers. What are they looking for? Why did they take the decision? How do you make it a success?

Oliver presents new research on how risk is related to performance in PE and how LPs can diagnose the specific risk mitigation skills of a GP

Now that the secondary market is so large (and continuing to mature), we explore what tension it may create with making primary commitments. After all, the secondary market gives the optionality for vintage diversification, faster deployment and visible NAV. How do you balance both primary with secondary commitments within the same programme? Have secondaries have become so attractive on a risk-adjusted basis that they're cannibalising primary appetite?

Addressing the trend towards outperformance among lower mid-market buyout. Performance dispersion is greater. What does the research say?

On private debt, 29% of allocators have a somewhat worse view on opportunities in the asset class compared to last year - the lowest approval rating across all private asset classes. Performance disperson could be to blame, as managers are being tested by their ability to manage credit risk in the face of market uncertainty. Yet the addressable market continues to grow and premium to liquid credit remains a fundamental allocation driver. In this session, we challenge speakers to take a long-term view on where the market is headed and what will determine it’s future.

by invitation only

Framing the conversations that allocators and distributors are having with managers about greater access for individual investors in private markets. How can institutional investors look to protect their privileged access? What do distributors view as an outlook?

As portfolio rotation remains slow, how can LPs use engagement to reduce vulnerabilities, protect long-term value, and make their capital more intentional?This breakout will help asset owners compare practical approaches to GP engagement, beyond reporting and governance, across climate, resilience, social risks, and portfolio-company exposure.

The mantra of being diversified, but not too diversified, has long been the key to success for many private market allocators. Which is why it was surprising just how concentrated software is within portfolios. Geographical diversification has also become more challenging. Not only is the world bifurcating into geopolitical power blocs, but the debate about sovereignty of capital being deployed within the same borders is becoming more prevalent. What is this doing to challenge the principles of how to build a diversified portfolio? Software may have been the first, but will not be the last to face AI disruption - are there other sectors now to prioritise or rotate out from?

The proliferation of spin-out teams continues. Great talent, with strong track record, setting out on their own to offer something different. For some, it’s hard to get comfortable with the risk profile, yet the outperformance is hard to ignore. How have LPs convinced the IC?

Blue-sky session examining how AI is transforming the job of being an allocator.

CIOs are having to navigate investment strategy as the world economy is being rewired by disruption and rewritten by geopolitics. What do they see on the horizon? Strong returns in public markets are mirrored by spluttering private markets. What are the priorities in the year ahead within their own investment programmes? What role does private markets play five years from now?

Wrap-up session concluding the key trends that have been observed across the day, taking the temperature of where private markets are at and informing LP-GP dialogue over the next two days of IPEM Global 2026.

Open to all!

By registration

By invitation only

Fund Level Credit Lines are top of mind of GPs and LPs alike these days. Recent HEC research shed light on their distortive impact on IRR performance statistics and offers practical solutions. During this interactive workshop, available to LPs and GPs in a closed-door setting under Chatham House Rules, Prof. Oliver Gottschalg of Gottschalg Analytics will discuss:Facts about the economic impact of bridge facilitiesWhy one needs to be worried about the impact of bridge facilities on IRR performance measuresHow the PERACS Rate of Return metric provides a powerful option to dramatically reduce this problemAttendees will also have the opportunity to ask questions about the data and methodology behind the research, and join the debate around the practical implications of these research findings.

Analysis of the ISP market today.

What’s going to be the big ideas for us to watch?

10:00 - 10:20 European LP Perspectives on Manager Selection What truly drives European capital into US mid-market funds? Direct vs. fund-of-funds strategies, selection criteria, and key trade-offs including testimonials from LPs allocating to the US. 10.20 - 10:50 The US Mid-Market Investment Climate A focused overview of current dynamics in the lower US mid-market—an area rich in opportunity, yet often under-allocated or difficult to access for European LPs, including testimonials from US GPs active in the segment.

Opening remarks providing context for today’s private infrastructure market.

Remember the good old days? The era of easy leverage, multiple expansion and benign macro feels like ancient history. Today, new risks and disruption obscure the path ahead. In this keynote session, we explore a view from the top of how it’s testing the foundations of private markets and what conviction investors have about the future.

Take a moment to reflect on where the VC industry is today compared to the last IPEM Global, and where it may be by the next.

Take a moment to reflect on where the private equity industry is today compared to the last IPEM Global, and where it may be by the next.

If one thing is certain in 2026, it is that not much is certain: we are living in times of elevated uncertainty in general and Economic Policy Uncertainty (EPU) in particular. This workshop tries to provide an empirical answer to question of what to expect for Private Equity (PE) in 2026 in terms of the implications of greater Policy Uncertainty

Exploring the market dynamics - including increased competition in the US; what trends to watch coming over to Europe; how the European landscape is evolving in lock-step or diverging from the US.

Consistent with LP feedback over the past 12–18 months, Europe continues to attract non-European institutional capital to a greater extent than at any point in the last decade. US public pension funds are redirecting capital toward European infrastructure, and Gulf sovereign wealth funds are following — reflecting a strategic pivot to hard assets. But their building of infrastructure platforms now looks under question given turmoil in the region. Is this a structural reorientation of global capital, or a cyclical rotation that could reverse? What are US pension funds finding in Europe they cannot get at home?

The top 1% of companies drive the lion’s share of returns. Consistently accessing that top 1% is incredibly difficult and central to LPs decision-making. With companies staying private for longer, what does constructing this process look like - does it focus on founders or firms? Is geography or sector a consideration? Are longer investment horizons a help or hindrance?

Value creation has moved from a nice-to-have narrative to a due diligence category in its own right. LPs are scrutinising operating team structures, portfolio intervention track records, and data foundations as rigorously as they scrutinise deal flow. How are GPs building the evidence base, and how are the most sophisticated funds turning operational competency into a fundraising edge?

Discussion on best practices and typical timelines.

If history tells us anything, it’s that private assets always perform well during periods of dislocation. Leaning in when public markets retrench is how the industry has outperformed. However, the conditions today feel like something of a perfect storm. What does the experience of past cycles teach us about where we are heading next?

The toolkit available to infrastructure investors has never been more varied. LPs can access the asset class through primary fund commitments, a growing secondary market, co-investment programmes, or direct ownership. Each route carries different trade-offs on fees, control, diversification and deployment pace. Which combination actually serves long-term institutional objectives, and which is simply the path of least resistance?

The prolonged slowdown in IPO and M&A activity is forcing a structural change in how VC investors generate returns. Secondary share sales are becoming increasingly common as GPs look to de-risk long hold periods by returning capital ahead of a traditional terminal exit. They are also a more regular component of funding rounds, particularly at later stages in Europe. How is it changing what LPs look for in VC firms, and how VCs plan their investment thesis?

Taking stock of how value creation is becoming a major strategic priority for GPs. How are managers building out their operating teams? What capabilities and networks are required?

Since 2009, HEC Paris and DowJones have joined forces to publish regular rankings of PE Firms based on their historic performance and expected future competitiveness respectively. Coverage in early years was focussed on the large buyout segment. As more data became available, the scope was broadened to include various buyout size segments, growth and venture capital strategies and primary and secondary fund of funds. This workshop will outline the data and the method behind the rankings and address related questions from attendees.If you are a GP and your firm was not featured in this year’s rankings, you can follow-up by sharing the relevant data (under NDA) with the team at HEC Paris and obtain a confirmation letter with your score.

Investor panel on deal diligence and execution.

Capital deployment into European energy transition remains structurally attractive, with falling construction costs, growing demand from AI and electrification, and binding EU 2030 targets requiring a step-change in build-out rates. 2025 was a breakout year for battery storage, with 23% more installed than the previous year. But the investment case at the project level is considerably more nuanced than the headline numbers suggest. How do investors get their heads around the specific risks of this fast-growing sector to find the most attractive returns?

One LP, one GP. Taking turns in the hotseat where no subject is off the table. What burning questions will they ask to each other?

Exploring what can be expected from new partnerships between private capital and OpenAI, Anthropic and Gemini

2 x 30min sessions. Audience splits into different tables for networking around key sectors - healthcare, industrials, software and business services.

The trend of allocating more capital with fewer managers is part of a wider private capital trend. In VC, what an LP wants from this kind of partnership depends on their long-term goals. Corporates want strategic value, access to innovation and business relationships. Family offices want a seat at the table, proximity to innovation and visibility on deals. Sovereigns want to develop an ecosystem that creates jobs and economic impact. While pension funds use VC as a growth accelerator. How do VCs tailor solutions across a diverse LP base to suit each of these aspirations?

Private markets has its roots in supporting high growth mid-market companies. That’s why it remains a core source of alpha. Yet these businesses are also having to confront the pressures of AI disruption, energy price shocks and geopolitical volatility. How is the landscape in these businesses changing? What do they need from private capital today?

The energy transition investment case has never been better understood, or more contested. With political headwinds in some markets and questions over long-term policy support, how robust is the thesis really? And for investors already deployed, are the assets in their portfolios performing in line with what the thesis promised?

Next to manager selection, commitment pacing is the key driver of portfolio returns for LP. This is increasingly challenging given the use of credit facilities and the fluctuations in the pace of drawdowns and distributions. We present a machine learning empowered approach to make a quantum leap in the accuracy of cash flow predictions and discuss practical applications.

While underlying company performance remains strong, weak capital markets and subdued secondary buyout activity is making exit planning more strategic. In a tougher exit market, how does today's value creation story play into scenario planning?  What are the approaches being taken to secure and maximise value? How is AI readiness both an opportunity and a threat to the exit process?

Welcome to the platform era. Traditional asset managers continue to reshape the private assets landscape. The case for consolidation makes sense. Strategic M&A offers access to attractive margins and growing retail allocations. What does the dominance of these asset managers contribute to the next phase of private markets? What’s been the experience of integrating public with private, and institutional with retail capabilities? Ultimately, how does it benefit investors?

Specialist emerging managers are consistently over-represented in the top quartile. If performance is not in question, what is holding LPs back? The concentration of investor capital within the top 20 VC megafunds suggests that bandwidth, data, risk-return profile and a preference of household names are all part of the equation. How should LPs think about building systematic exposure to this part of the market, what barriers are holding them back and what does a repeatable framework for identifying the top tier actually look like?

One LP, one GP. Taking turns in the hotseat where no subject is off the table. What burning questions will they ask to each other?

In the face of a resurgent China and a turbulent US, Europe looks caught in the middle. For investors, geopolitics is testing long-established norms about geographical diversification. Where is the value in the year ahead? How should allocators make sense of the opportunities on offer across different regions?

As a precursor to the afternoon’s Emerging Manager Summit, we take a look at the journey from ISP to Fund 1 and ask the question - is it a destiny or can you stay deal-by-deal for life?

The capital requirements of energy transition and the digital economy are generating a new frontier for asset-backed lending — one where hard asset collateral intersects with some of the most structurally urgent investment themes of the decade. Renewables, data centres, and sustainable infrastructure share a common characteristic that makes them natural candidates for ABL structures: they generate predictable, contracted cash flows backed by tangible assets, offering institutional investors a path to uncorrelated returns without sacrificing downside protection. This panel examines how ABL is being deployed across these themes in practice: from the rapid emergence of data centre ABS as a financing tool for AI-driven infrastructure buildout, to the integration of sustainability-linked structures within ABL facilities and the credibility challenges that come with them. With its emphasis on asset quality and cash flow discipline, is ABL uniquely placed to become the default financing architecture for sustainable infrastructure? And if so, what do allocators need to get right to capture this frontier opportunity?

Governments have always defined strategic priorities around critical infrastructure, national security, technological leadership and economic resilience. Now private capital is increasingly being used as a capital source to finance this agenda. For investors, the question is how to engage with strategically sensitive assets which are increasingly recognised by state and non-state actors as high-value targets. Are LPs comfortable with the strategic exposure they are accumulating? What does it mean for GPs when governments become counterparties or customers? When private equity portfolios are on the frontline (whether their managers intended them to be or not), how does the industry build the resilience that this new role will demand?

In this opening session, we hear an independent assessment of what sovereignty means in the age of weaponised interdependence. This provides a framework for the scope of sovereignty before the rest of the sessions look at the investment opportunity set.

What does a high-performing human organisation look like when half its work is AI-assisted?

The Value Creator Score is an aggregate metric developed by Gottschalg Analytics that measures the inherent skill of a GP’s stewardship for a specific deal during the acquisition process. The metric allows sell-side stakeholders to quantitatively evaluate the GP across five key dimensions covering performance, strategic capabilities, and risk.

What is the definition of sovereignty as a thematic investment? Take a moment to reflect on where it is today compared to the last IPEM Global, and where it may be by the next.

No market moves the needle on infrastructure quite like the United States. The grid needs rebuilding, the data centre boom shows no signs of slowing, and private capital has never been more needed to fill the gap left by retreating federal ambition. Yet policy volatility, permitting bottlenecks, and an energy transition agenda that shifts with the political weather have made the investment case harder to read than it has been in years.

This session examines how leading PE operators are building procurement capability from scratch, deploying AI-powered spend analytics to find savings that management never knew existed, and embedding category management disciplines that persist beyond the hold period.

The investment environment is tougher than ever. Identifying category leaders is one thing, but running a successful process to bring them into the portfolio is quite another. Elsewhere, targets are less apparent. Some see value where others may struggle, meaning complex carve-outs and divestitures are their bread and butter. What is it about the DNA of these firms that makes them so successful? How do they view current market conditions for this strategy?

JD Vance steps off the stage in Munich. He’s hearing applause but the room sits in stunned silence. The penny had dropped. America’s security umbrella, an essential pillar of European economic prosperity, was no longer guaranteed. Since then, defence has moved to one of the most actively sought investment themes in European private markets. What is the pace of change in LP mandates to invest, or will structural barriers exist? What are the exit dynamics, and how durable is the growth runway beyond the current rearmament cycle?

Is bigger always better? Judging by the growth of large multi-asset managers, some believe so. The past decade has seen a significant consolidation of AUM among large-scale alternative managers that provide a single entry point for private markets exposure. What are the drivers behind this trend? How do firms remain agile? What does it take to build a franchise for the future?

The past decade of infrastructure investing has focused heavily on assets themselves, the towers, the cables, the turbines. But the businesses that service, maintain and supply those assets represent a quietly compelling opportunity for investors seeking higher yields and growth strategies. What does the opportunity set actually look like for investors willing to move up the supply chain? And as demand for infrastructure build-out accelerates, are the businesses enabling that build-out the smarter place to put capital?

Climate risk has gone way beyond science communication to hard facts. Last summer, costs to the EU hit 43bn to combat extreme weather. The reality on portfolio risk is now clear for all to see. For example, coastal assets become uninsurable, companies are vulnerable to rising energy input costs and challenges to recruit the workforce. Sustainability teams which were setup as a compliance function for ESG reporting are now required to be more integral to the deal lifecycle from due diligence, ownership and exit.

This seminar on Public Market Equivalent (PME) models we will perform a live demo of the Bloomberg PME Module functionality (PERACS Alpha, PME+, GEM IPP, KS-PME, Direct Alpha) with a deeper dive on the PERACS Alpha methodology. The goal of the PME models is to allow you to benchmark your private equity funds to the public markets, answering the question "What would my return have been if I invested the same cash in the Public Stock Market instead of Private Equity?"Attendees will also have the opportunity to ask questions about the data and methodology and join the debate around the practical implications on a live demo.

One LP, one GP. Taking turns in the hotseat where no subject is off the table. What burning questions will they ask to each other?

The position of the Gulf as a strategic region for energy, travel and logistics has been in sharp focus in 2026. Does regional policy change the investment landscape? How do local investors view themes around resilience and diversification? Is there a growing role for private capital in the region?

The best returns in private equity will no longer come simply from financial engineering, but a fundamental change to how a business operates in a new technological era. What does genuine transformation look like inside a portfolio company — and how do you know if you're achieving it? How are leading GPs using AI, talent strategy, and operational capability to create value that wasn't there at entry? And what separates the firms that truly rewire their companies from those that simply optimise them?

The consolidation thesis has never been more popular, or more competitive. Has buy and build matured into a genuinely differentiated model or merely a way of dressing up a busy M&A function? How do you demonstrate genuine organic growth within a roll-up at exit, and why do so many fail to do this? Is AI about to accelerate the pace of due diligence and post-merger integration, or just make it more expensive?

LP engagement with the mid-market is being driven by a desire to access where the majority of deal volume sits and replace exposure to managers that have scaled into the large-cap bracket. But does the mid-market live up to its billing? What diversification benefits do these managers genuinely offer, and as the market matures, is the opportunity set getting better or more crowded?

This session looks at emerging sovereignty methodologies, highlighting how they differ by country and region and what this means for fund design and portfolio construction. How robust frameworks support fund design, portfolio selection and reporting in private debt specifically.

The traditional secondaries model was designed for a market that has shifted. Blind pool capital committed to a 10-year fund, with returns generated at terminal exit of the underlying portfolio. This worked when there were 5,000 portfolio companies and 1,000 exits a year. Today, there are 29,000 PE-backed companies with a similar number of exits. It suggests that secondaries are the future market infrastructure. Instead of being a reactive tool when LPs need to buy in to or cash out of mid-life funds, they are a more proactive layer that supports capital allocation, portfolio management and rebalancing during the fund’s lifecycle. In 5 years, do secondaries look more like a market infrastructure? And what does it mean for the illiquidity premium?

This workshop will provide theoretical foundations and empirical support for a novel approach to measure risk adjusted returns in PE which makes it possible to identify likely future outperformers with unprecedented reliability.

Data centres are no longer just a tech story. The influence from geopolitics and power markets make them increasingly a sovereignty story too. Regulatory changes in the region improve the value proposition of home-grown facilities. What is this demand driver doing to the investment case? If you’re an investor with conviction to invest in data centres, fibre, 5G, renewables or grid infrastructure, what do you need to consider?

Europe is having a moment. But with capital flooding in and valuations following, the more interesting question may be what is happening everywhere else. From Asia-Pacific's vast and underfunded grid, to the Gulf's transformation from capital exporter to infrastructure builder, the rest of the world is not standing still.

Private credit continues to expand into new asset types that have traditionally been the foray of public markets or bank balance sheets. Commercial and corporate finance, infrastructure and project finance and commercial real estate are some areas where growth potential is high. What does the transfer of these assets into the private markets mean for investors? Private investment grade is the next act. $40 trillion market. Accelerating due to long duration financing needs of IG borrowers in energy transition and data centres. Bespoke financing solutions that at speed and with certainty.

In Europe, and shortly the Gulf, conflict has reshaped the investment case around energy security, turning it from a thesis into tangible opportunities. From critical minerals to grid modernisation and battery storage, private capital will be an essential part of the funding mix - in Europe, expectations are for it to provide the majority of the 660bn / yr that’s needed. What does energy security mean for portfolio construction? How are investors balancing fiduciary obligations with the long-term direction of energy transition?

Private equity has been dining out on software returns for decades. Scalable, high margin businesses, with recurring, sticky revenues kept sponsors coming back for more. Now, investors are asking probing questions about the viability of tech exposure against the rapid onslaught of AI. What do leading tech investors make of the outlook? What attributes do LPs need to look for in managers who will succeed in this era? Where does software investing go next?

Open to all!

By invitation only

Open to all!

By registration

By invitation only

Through their fund commitment choices, LPs in general (and fund of funds in particular) take decisions which have important implications for performance outcomes. Yet it is difficult to identify how exactly decisions are impacting return attributes, risk characteristics and downside resilience of a fund portfolio. Our advanced and data driven analytics shed lights on these important issues and make it possible to directly isolate and quantify the value add of portfolio design in private equity.

Take a moment to reflect on where private markets exposure in AI is today compared to the last IPEM Global, and where it may be by the next.

Take a moment to reflect on where the Asia Pacific market is today compared to the last IPEM Global, and where it may be by the next.

Take a moment to reflect on where the private debt segment is today compared to the last IPEM Global, and where it may be by the next.

Take a moment to reflect on where the private equity industry is today compared to the last IPEM Global, and where it may be by the next.

Private equity's class of 2018 was a sign of the times. Premium prices funded with debt that cost next to nothing. Many years on, these companies still sit in portfolios with buyout firms yet to bite the bullet. The industry urgently needs an answer. So what are the possible solutions?

In a world where everyone claims top quartile status (somewhere, somehow ...), we propose a superior and data driven way to identify a relevant peer group of funds for a meaningful return comparison and demonstrate the superior ability to identify persistent performers through this approach.

Every investor is being asked the same question: how much of your portfolio should be in AI? Valuations are elevated, the hype is deafening, and FOMO is driving too many allocation decisions. How are investors sizing exposures across venture, buyout, and infrastructure? How do they evaluate whether a GP truly has AI credentials or has simply updated its pitch deck, and how do they stress-test return assumptions in a market moving faster than the models?

For LPs trying to navigate the region, the challenge is not a shortage of opportunity but an oversupply of competing narratives, each with its own set of risks and agendas. Building a credible APAC allocation in the current market means making deliberate choices: which markets, which managers, which structures. How should LPs be thinking about APAC as a strategic allocation rather than an opportunistic one? What does the right manager relationship look like, and how many is too many? And for those starting from scratch, where do you begin?

The sources of capital that seek private credit exposure continue to diversify, with significant inflows coming from retail and insurance capital pools. This is just as the market is evolving into an ecosystem. Banks are becoming asset-lite. Insurers are allocators, originators and syndicators of risk. Investors must make sense of this new landscape and ask themselves - what role do we need asset managers to play?

The traditional model, where a GP does a deal and offers a slice to LPs, is taking a smaller slice of the co-investment pie. Advanced co-investors are looking at equity infusions, minority stake purchases, call-on-rights or data-driven deal selection to drive outperformance. Continuation vehicles blur the lines even further. Meanwhile, co-investment fundraising has decoupled from primary fundraising trends, as GP capital constraints drive more co-investment supply. What new opportunities do co-investors see in the space? What advantages do LPs gain by building in-house capability? Where does the science of co-investing go next?

This session brings together a panel of leading PE firms to take the temperature of their investment and exit pipelines in the year ahead. Among the topics; where are fund DPIs running at across their vintages? Is the auction really dead (something this panel declared during last year’s IPEM in Paris)? What does geopolitics mean in practice for portfolio companies and how do LPs understand the risks? Has the reality check on valuations finally happened to bring buyers and sellers closer?

China is entering a new innovation cycle, driven by breakthroughs in AI, robotics, advanced manufacturing and enterprise technologies. For global LPs, however, the key question is not simply where innovation is happening—but which investment strategies and managers are best positioned to turn that innovation into long-term returns. As global capital looks for differentiated sources of alpha, this session brings together leading Chinese GPs to discuss where they are deploying capital, how they identify the next generation of market leaders, and why China’s evolving innovation ecosystem may represent one of the most compelling investment opportunities of the coming decade.

Private credit's golden age is facing its most serious stress test. The aggressive lending vintages of 2021 and 2022 are now colliding with a higher-for-longer rate environment, with interest coverage ratios for many mid-market firms falling below 1.0x. Payment default rates have historically sat at 1–2%, but covenant defaults reached 3.2% last September and are expected to rise further. With software companies in particular facing AI threats to future sustained growth, how bad could things become in the coming years? Does the rise of ‘bad PIK’, which reached 6.4% of total private debt volume in Q1 2026, suggest a gathering storm? This panel will assess the real shape of portfolio risk: what early-warning signals are being acted on, and what tools — covenant enforcement, sponsor equity injections, sector rotation — are being deployed to protect capital?

In the past few years, AI has attracted the lion’s share of VC funding. The median multiple for AI companies is 2.1x versus 1.4x of non-AI companies. What’s the early prognosis? How are AI-enabled tech companies of tomorrow taking shape? What kind of opportunities are VC and growth funds seeing in their pipeline?

What started fifteen years ago as simply purchasing a share of management fees, carry, and GP income has evolved into a full financing solution. GP-stakes investors, now crowded out of the large-cap space, have evolved into seeding new managers and supporting mid-market firms. What role will this capital play in the future transformation of the industry? When should a GP take on a partner, and which model fits? How do affiliates keep their identity inside a platform? And with succession waves and consolidation ahead, where does the ownership of the industry go next?

This workshop shows how machine learning can transform private equity investing by serving as an “algorithmic allocator” in fund selection and secondary stake valuation. Using proprietary datasets and predictive models, ML can simulate past fundraising events, identify features that best forecast fund performance, and calibrate allocations for superior outcomes. Case studies show significant improvements in TVPI and DPI when allocations are adjusted algorithmically, generating billions in added value. In secondaries, ML identifies inefficiencies in pricing—where transaction prices show little correlation with future multiples—creating arbitrage opportunities. By systematically analysing GP strategy, scale, diversification, and positioning, ML delivers more accurate fund valuations, enabling LPs to manufacture superior returns.

In an environment where LP scrutiny of manager selection has never been more rigorous, the ability to provide clear, consistent and timely data on portfolio performance, credit quality and risk exposure is increasingly a differentiator. The story of 2026 is that, when markets turn, transparency at company, manager, fund and portfolio level matters more than ever. How do allocators and managers connect the dots?

One LP, one GP. Taking turns in the hotseat where no subject is off the table. What burning questions will they ask to each other?

As hyperscale requirements grow, they are placing extraordinary pressure on electricity grids and driving infrastructure buildout at a scale that was hard to imagine five years ago. This session examines how infrastructure GPs are underwriting data centre demand within their broader energy theses — what it means for asset selection, power procurement, and return profiles.

Japan offers something increasingly rare in Asia-Pacific: reliable deal flow, clearer exit pathways and valuations that still look attractive against Western comparables. What does genuine local partnership look like for LPs without an existing presence in the market? And as more global capital chases the same pipeline, is competition beginning to compress the returns that made Japan so attractive in the first place?

The OECD estimates that combatting climate change requires $5trn capital annually. The private sector will be a key source of capital, providing up to as much as 80% of the necessary funding (IMF). A new generation of institutional climate investor is ready to meet the challenge head on. What is the reality of deploying at pace without compromising on investment fundamentals - manager selection, sustainability and commercial returns?

Private equity has always bought into resilience. Identify businesses with structural protection against competition, grow then exit them. Now that every business faces a chance of complete model obsolescence from AI in 10 years, that logic is being turned on its head. As AI lowers the barriers to entry, what defensive characteristics should we now look for? What’s the right framework to assess what companies survive and thrive in the AI era?

Data centres are competing with consumers and stretching economies for electricity from a grid that is simultaneously low on supply. This session examines where private equity and infrastructure capital is flowing across power generation assets, how investors are underwriting today's builds against rapidly improving AI efficiency, and what stranded asset risk really looks like in a market moving this fast.

Most institutional LP mandates were constructed during an era of globalisation, low inflation and political stability. Exclusion lists, net zero commitments and impact frameworks were all calibrated as such. In a fractured world, they look out of date. Deglobalisation, resource competition and conflict are all challenging these long-held assumptions. On the one hand, regulators are holding firm on ESG commitments; whilst the macro environment demands investment into areas like defence and critical minerals, exactly the areas that historically have been excluded on ESG grounds. How do LPs navigate this shift? Do they have the mandate flexibility, governance or analytical frameworks to reallocate towards these themes?

India has quietly become the most compelling private markets story in Asia-Pacific. Entry valuations are climbing, the near-term environment demands patience, and manager selection has never mattered more. Is buyout or growth equity the more natural entry point in the market? How do you assess a manager's edge in a market where everyone claims local knowledge? And at current valuations, is the return premium still there?

Performing due dilligence these days means dealing with one if not two prior funds without any meaningful exit activity. This calls for methods able to detect fund manager skill absent any distributions. Drawing on the PERACS analytical toolkit we present and discuss five such approaches and show how they help distinguish luck from skill.

Exits are scarce, maturities loom and sponsors would rather find clever money than sell good assets cheaply. Enter hybrid capital, sitting between debt and equity and borrowing the best excuses of both. Should it sit in the debt or equity allocation? How do the coupons work? What is the opportunity set?

We all know the problem. The backlog of companies held for more than four years stands at 16,000. That’s equivalent to 52% of total buyout-backed inventory, the highest on record. Holding periods have also hit new heights, averaging 6.6 years according to McKinsey. Something has changed about how private equity assets move through the system. So what does the industry do to clear the backlog? Has the way firms handle exit planning changed?

By invitation only

Private markets is in the middle of a structural expansion on multiple fronts. There are new pools of capital entering the asset class, deeper and more diverse than before. New investor channels are opening up as individual access becomes a reality. And new fund products are being developed to tailor to the evolving needs of all markets. In this session, we speak to three architects of this expansion to hear how firms position themselves for growth.

With more than $500bn in evergreen AUM, the industry has a new half trillion dollar question. What does the long-term evolution of semi-liquid products mean for both private wealth and institutional investors? The convergence of public and private markets tests what structure, cost and access should look like. Institutional demand suggests this may be more than a retail product. Meanwhile, scrutiny of fees, transparency and valuations is increasing. While some private banks and wealth managers have embraced semi-liquid products, others remain more cautious. Are evergreen funds in their current form the answer, or will the market evolve toward something different? 

The maturity of European direct lending is no longer in question. The question is no longer whether the market is crowded, but how the best managers are winning deals that others can't - especially when financial sponsor activity remains subdued. As sponsor-backed deals become more direct lenders adapting their origination approach to As deal quality becomes more variable, what does a genuine origination edge look like in practice? This panel examines how GPs are finding ways to further tune their origination engine and documentation process to compress timelines and reduce friction for borrowers and sponsors alike to gain a competitive edge. Where is execution speed being won without compromising credit discipline?

Take a moment to reflect on where the secondaries industry is today compared to the last IPEM Global, and where it may be by the next.

The rise of new players targeting underserved areas of the secondaries market is a sign of its growing maturity. This includes mid-market secondaries, a rich hunting ground considering the composition of the buyout sector. Sector specialist funds are also the new kids on the block, providing fresh investor capital into CVs, plugging the gap left by lukewarm LPs. What does their domain expertise mean for the future of the secondaries market?

Private credit CLO issuance hit new highs in 2025. Debut feeders were issued by more managers than ever before. They had demand from insurance companies to thank, as rated paper unlocks more favourable capital treatment than plain LP interests. But risks are emerging. Rising defaults and downgrades ask questions over credit quality. Whilst the presence of asset-based finance collateral, retail investors, new geographies raise new risk profiles all make some managers better positioned than others to navigate the path ahead.

The rapid growth of evergreen funds, reaching $350bn in AUM by 2024 and growing, introduces a huge new wave of capital into a market historically dominated by closed-end institutional capital. In secondaries, evergreen buyers have been winning processes at tighter discounts to NAV. Will this compress returns for the market as a whole? Institutions are asking for a piece of the action. Can retail and institutional investors really co-exist? Meanwhile the press, with fewer deals going around, finally has something to write about.

Family offices are no longer a niche. They are becoming one of the most significant and fastest-growing sources of private capital globally, with the scale, flexibility and appetite to move into spaces institutional LPs might avoid. They co-invest alongside sovereign funds, seed managers, and increasingly bypass intermediaries entirely. What does their rise mean for the GP-LP power structure?

One LP, one GP. Taking turns in the hot seat where no subject is off the table. What burning questions will they ask each other?

It's hard to strike out on your own. Yet the industry's top entrepreneurs still make the leap. Why do they do it? Because they look at the industry today and believe they can build a better model. What unique qualities will be needed to deliver outperformance? What attributes will these funds possess? Who will be the winners in the next generation of GP?

The industry has manufactured a range of liquidity solutions, which today are in sharper focus as traditional exits dry up. It begs the question which tools are most appropriate for which situation and who bears the cost of using them. In this session, the audience votes on which to dig into more detail. Then, we take the top three and explore the pros and cons it offers and why some are perceived as more controversial.

As modern private credit faces its first meaningful credit cycle test, the underlying tectonic plates are starting to shift, opening up a new landscape of stressed/distressed opportunities to explore. This cohort of managers have raised over $100 billion in the last two years to capitalise on late-cycle volatility, training their sights on non-cyclical, asset-heavy sectors like power/energy transition, music royalties, and specialty finance. In the current market environment, PE sponsors are seeking out flexible, bespoke capital solutions to support their portcos, rather than sell at a discount. What are the key features of opportunistic credit that investors should be aware of, when diligencing managers? And how are these managers triaging stressed situations, work-outs, and control-position strategies to take full advantage of the forces at play today? As more capital chases the same dislocations, the critical question for LPs is how to distinguish the true opportunistic credit manager from the distressed tourist.

Many PE fund managers claim they are able to mitigate investment risk, but such a claim is tricky to demonstrate/validate as the discussion of risk is often reduced to the loss ratio. We present two complementary measures based on which distinct risk management skills of fund managers can be identified in the investment track record

How does an LP differentiate between a genuine opportunity that warrants a second hold period, versus a GP trying to avoid crystallising underperformance? In this session, we ask a panel of investors to evaluate hypothetical CV opportunities, revealing how investment committees from different groups review opportunities and take decisions to roll or cash out.

Open to all!

This panel examines the structural forces reshaping ABF at scale, including the rise of bank-manager partnerships and what they mean for deal flow and pricing power; the underwriting discipline required as eligible collateral stretches from digital infrastructure to royalties and aviation assets; how insurers are reshaping deal structure, and the opportunities emerging in Europe as securitisation gains momentum. With early warning signs appearing in some corners of the market, the session will also interrogate the central promise of the asset class: does collateral protection genuinely deliver when the cycle turns, and are institutional portfolios positioned to capture it?