UK fund selectors have pulled back on their allocations to private equity while the European market as a whole has increased exposure to the sector, according to the European Fund Selector Study by Research in Finance and Neuberger Berman.
Among fund selectors that allocate to or recommend private equity across Europe, 29% of retail allocators increased allocation in the past year while 9% did on the institutional level. But a majority of British selectors indicated a decrease rather than an increase.
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In contrast, 32% of Swiss selectors heightened allocations and 41% of Spanish selectors increased their positions. The countries intend to continue the trend, with 30% of Swiss selectors and 28% of Spanish selectors looking to increase holdings in the next year. In the UK, a net 22% are planning to expand exposure.
José Cosio, head of intermediary EMEA & LatAm at Neuberger Berman, said: “Despite public market volatility, we continue to see significant deal flow across Neuberger Berman’s $115bn private markets platform with on average 11 deals per week across co-investments in 2023. This volume continues to enable the team to take a highly selective approach to building a diversified portfolio of direct private equity investments alongside leading private equity managers.
“With a healthy pipeline of new investment opportunities supported by growing allocation to ELTIF private market strategies, we believe this structure will become the gold standard of investor access in years to come.”
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The study also found that the ELTIF vehicle is coming to the attention of pan-European investors, with over half of being aware of the product.
