And so marks the end of another action packed year. Although not exactly a (snow) flurry of activity, deal valuations and activity have show signs of picking up in 2024. And whisper it quietly, but the IPO markets are also beginning to thaw out. GPs have listened to investors and sought ways to increase distributions, with secondary deal volumes forecast to end the year between $150 and $175 billion.
Every January, Europe’s private markets industry looks forward to celebrating three fun-packed days of networking, deal discussions, and sharing views on industry trends at IPEM Cannes. The 2025 edition – whose overarching theme is “New Promises for Private Markets” – is set to raise excitement levels even higher, with the introduction of a dedicated private wealth track.
More than 500 wealth investors, including 250 single- and multi-family offices, private banks, and wealth managers will be attending IPEM Cannes | Wealth 2025, making Cannes the only place to be for European mid-market GPs to forge an even wider set of relationships with both institutional and private wealth investors; two for the price of one!
Equally, the three-day extravaganza will bring Europe’s private wealth community in to the heart of private markets, with plenty of opportunities to connect with a ‘who’s who’ of leading fund managers operating across private equity, private credit, real estate and real assets.
New Promises for Private Markets – BRINGING TOGETHER PRIVATE MARKETS AND WEALTH ECOSYSTEMS IPEM Cannes has been the flagship event for Private Market professionals since 2016 and is now leading the Wealth Revolution in Private Capital with the launch of IPEM Wealth! This milestone event also features the first-ever IPEM Wealth Awards, celebrating excellence across the industry.
Relax. X-hale. Private markets have once again proved why they remain so popular, with news that Elon Musk’s X.AI has successfully raised $6 billion in funding. It is the latest technology start-up company to delay floating on the public markets via an IPO – for so long the traditional exit route but, in recent times, a less desirable option as companies choose to stay private for longer.
Impact investing continues to evolve as GPs work hard to develop effective ways to measure impact potential in their portfolios and improve the quality of reporting. This is something that LPs are increasingly focused on as they screen deals to determine the strength of the impact thesis. Returns are still a priority but investors are becoming more forensic in understanding the tangible improvements to society.
Over the last two years, IPEM has made significant strides highlighting many of the key topics and challenges facing impact funds. During the Impact Summit on Day 2 of IPEM Paris 2024, supported by Astanor, Capricorn Investment Group, Indefi and Simpl, delegates heard about what LPs are looking for in impact funds, opportunities in emerging markets, whether or not impact funds were now mainstream, and investing in education and social inclusion.
Some of the key investment themes that LPs are considering range from industrial decarbonization to food supply chain innovation – i.e. alternative protein, regenerative farming – and plastic waste.