Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - In 2025, GCM Grosvenor achieved a record fundraising year, raising $10.7 billion, with $3.5 billion raised in Q4 alone, marking significant growth compared to previous years [4][5] - Fee-Related Earnings, Adjusted EBITDA, and Adjusted Net Income increased by 11%, 15%, and 18% respectively compared to 2024 [5][24] - The company ended 2025 with $91 billion in assets under management (AUM), a 14% increase from the end of 2024 [7] - Fee-Paying AUM grew 12% year-over-year to $72 billion, while Contracted Not Yet Fee-Paying AUM increased by 27% to $10 billion [8] Business Line Data and Key Metrics Changes - Absolute Return Strategies (ARS) performance was strong, with a Multi-Strategy Composite generating a 15% gross rate of return in 2025 [4] - Infrastructure, the fastest-growing strategy, returned approximately 11% for the year [4] - ARS fee-paying AUM and management fees grew 15% and 5% year-over-year respectively [22] Market Data and Key Metrics Changes - The individual investor channel saw AUM increase by 18% year-over-year, indicating strong demand for customized solutions [8] - The company has less exposure to SaaS businesses, with only 4% of total AUM and less than 6% of credit AUM attributed to this sector [10] Company Strategy and Development Direction - GCM Grosvenor is focused on diversifying its investment strategies and enhancing its wealth management distribution through initiatives like Grove Lane Partners [8] - The company aims to double its Fee-Related Earnings to over $280 million by 2028 and grow adjusted net income per share to more than $1.20 [12] - The firm is committed to maintaining a capital-light business model while increasing shareholder returns through share buybacks and debt repayment [27][12] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management expressed confidence in the investment opportunity set and the strength of their fundraising pipeline entering 2026 [5][9] - The recent market volatility is viewed as an opportunity, with management emphasizing the importance of diversification in their investment strategy [9][10] - The company anticipates continued operating leverage and margin expansion through 2028 [30] Other Important Information - The gross unrealized carried interest balance reached an all-time high of $949 million, up 14% from the end of 2024 [7] - The company repurchased 2.8 million shares in Q4 at an average price of $11.11 per share, totaling $31 million [24] Q&A Session Summary Question: Capital allocation plans post-warrant exercise - Management indicated a focus on maintaining a capital-light business model, with plans for share buybacks and debt repayment [27] Question: Operating leverage and margin expansion - Management believes they can continue to drive margin expansion through 2028 [30] Question: Future of the absolute return business - Management remains cautious about budgeting for organic growth in the absolute return business but acknowledges recent successes [34] Question: Fundraising outlook for 2026 - Management has a strong pipeline and expects fundraising in 2026 to potentially exceed 2025, but they are not officially budgeting for that yet [58] Question: Performance fees and carried interest - Management noted that carried interest realizations were lower than expected but expressed confidence in future increases [60]

BlackRock has implemented a new incentive arrangement for its executives, aligning their pay with the performance of its flagship private markets investment funds. The scheme, named the Executive Carry Program (ECP), is applicable to selected senior executives, excluding the CEO. It provides eligible executives with the opportunity to receive a portion of carried interest distributions originating from a pool of BlackRock’s main private markets investment funds. In an SEC filing, the company said that ...

Financial Performance - DigitalBridge reported fee revenues of $94 million for Q3 2025, representing a 22% year-over-year increase [4][26] - Fee-related earnings (FRE) grew by 43% to $37 million, indicating continued margin improvement as revenue growth outpaced expenses [4][29] - The company raised $1.6 billion in new capital during the quarter, bringing the year-to-date total to $4.1 billion [4][34] Business Line Performance - The company achieved a record 2.6 gigawatts of data center leasing in Q3, which accounted for one-third of total U.S. hyperscale leasing for the quarter [17][18] - DigitalBridge's fee-earning equity under management (FEEUM) increased to $40.7 billion, a 19% increase from the previous year [33] Market Data - The APAC data center market is projected to grow at double-digit rates, expected to reach $77 billion by 2030, driven by AI initiatives [47] - The company is positioned to capture significant market share in Asia Pacific, with strategic investments in key markets like Johor, Kuala Lumpur, and Sydney [50][56] Company Strategy and Industry Competition - DigitalBridge's strategy focuses on leveraging its power bank, which consists of over 20 gigawatts of secured power across its data center portfolio, to gain a competitive advantage in the AI infrastructure market [17][19] - The partnership with Franklin Templeton aims to democratize access to institutional-quality digital and energy infrastructure investments, targeting a $94 trillion global infrastructure need by 2040 [11][12] Management Commentary on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management expressed confidence in meeting or exceeding full-year objectives, highlighting the strong demand for digital infrastructure and the execution capabilities of the DigitalBridge platform [4][5] - The company anticipates continued robust leasing activity and capital formation, with a focus on expanding margins in co-investment programs [9][10] Other Important Information - DigitalBridge is launching new investment strategies, including a programmatic private wealth distribution channel in partnership with Franklin Templeton [10][11] - The company maintains a strong balance sheet with $173 million in available corporate cash, providing liquidity for future investments [32][34] Q&A Session Summary Question: Can you help us understand when unrealized carried interest is recognized? - Management indicated that carried interest is recognized at various stages, including when leases are signed and when data halls are delivered, with full realization taking three to five years [71][77] Question: What is your view on how new data center projects achieve stabilized capitalization? - Management noted that there is significant interest from real estate allocators in stabilized data centers, which are seen as low-risk investments with predictable cash flows [85][86] Question: Is the Franklin Templeton partnership a one-time initiative? - Management clarified that while the partnership is currently focused on a specific product, there are plans for additional partnerships in the future [108][109]

Compensation Structure - Carried interest is a compensation form rewarding employees based on investment returns, typically seen in private equity firms [1] - Abu Dhabi entities are increasingly adopting carry to attract top global talent [4] - Mubadala Capital, Lunate, and Mubadala Investment Company offer compensation tied to investment performance [3] Sovereign Wealth Fund Trends - Implementing carry in sovereign wealth funds has been challenging due to the lack of third-party capital raising [2] - Newer sovereign-linked entities in Abu Dhabi and some sovereign wealth funds are starting to incorporate carry-like compensation [2][3] - Compensation tied to investment performance is becoming more important for sovereign wealth funds [3]

Today in Bloomberg Deals: Carried interest arrives in the Middle East, it's a sizzling summer for US IPOs and Citigroup makes another big hire from JPMorgan https://t.co/a9WtxHjDGg ...

Talent Acquisition Trends - Job candidates increasingly desire carried interest awards from Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds before accepting job offers [1]