The private capital industry is predicted to continue a hiring spree in the new year, with nine in 10 firms expected to maintain or increase their headcount over the next 12 months.
Surveying over 85 leading private capital firms, a compensation and employment report by Preqin suggests the majority of firms are looking to leverage the growing popularity of private assets, with talent within the industry to remain robust in 2025.
Professionals working in investment or deal teams remain the most sought-after talent, with 64 per cent of respondents noting high demand in this space, although this has slightly dipped from 68 per cent in 2023. According to Preqin, the decline ties to the slowdown in deals and exits across private capital in recent years.
A challenging fundraising environment has also led to a significant increase in demand for professionals in this space.
“A persistently soft private capital fundraising environment, which saw aggregate fundraising fall from $1,634 billion in 2022 to $1,409 billion in 2023, has seen the largest absolute increase in demand for fundraising professionals,” Preqin said.
Some 15 per cent of respondents put fundraising professionals as the most in demand this year, up from 9 per cent in 2023.
In terms of salaries, Preqin found junior and mid-level roles have been garnering larger base salary increases than senior-level roles. Junior-level and mid-level roles saw median increases in base salary of 8 per cent over the 2023–24 fiscal year, compared to senior-level roles (6 per cent) and executive-level roles (5 per cent) over the same period.
Female representation also continues to witness significant improvement across all seniority levels. According to Preqin, women in senior management roles stood at 39 per cent in 2024, up from 28 per cent in 2023.
Over the same period, representation in mid-level roles grew from 41 per cent to 45 per cent and junior-level roles grew from 46 per cent to 49 per cent.
Executive management roles, while rising at a slower pace, were up from 13 per cent to 14 per cent in 2024.
However, amid a growing appetite for private assets, the industry has not been immune to recent macroeconomic challenges, Preqin pointed out, which have dampened the pace of hiring compared to previous years.
Almost a quarter (23 per cent) of firms believe they will be hiring at a slower rate over the coming year, compared to 8 per cent the year prior.
“Private markets’ slower assets under management growth in recent years, largely due to the higher interest rate environment, has resulted in industry headcount growth slowing,” explained Cameron Joyce, global head of research insights at Preqin.
“However, talent is still in demand as the industry continues to grow, with assets under management forecast to reach $23.5 trillion in 2029, up from $12.2 trillion at the end of 2023.”
Earlier this month, Kaizen Recruitment’s Investment Analyst Salary Guide 2024 also revealed analysts with two to five years of experience and specialised expertise in asset classes, such as private debt, infrastructure and private equity, remain in high demand.
