The global market value of eight of the largest asset classes reached a record $246.8trn at the end of 2024, analysis from Ocorian has revealed.

Its new Global Asset Monitor found that a surge in equity markets had driven global asset values to rise by a record $25.5trn in 2024.

However, Ocorian noted that, over the long term, private assets had grown nearly three times as fast as public assets, rising by 618 per cent over the past 15 years.

Last year, the value of private market assets increased by around $1.27trn, or 9.7 per cent, to a record high of $14.34trn, which excludes undeployed capital.

Private assets have become increasingly attractive due to their ability to support diversification alongside returns that have been 4.8 per cent higher per year since 2000, according to Ocorian, with private equity accounting for around 75 per cent of the total value.

Ocorian forecast ongoing strong growth in private markets, driven by demand from investors and privately owned companies.

The analysis of global equity and bond markets, as well as private equity, infrastructure, real estate and private debt, found that publicly listed assets ended 2024 with a market value of $232.45trn, up by 11.6 per cent.

Listed equities rose by 15.4 per cent over the year to $115.03trn, while bond markets increased by 8.1 per cent to $117.42trn.

The monitor found that bond markets had grown by more than half since 2020 due to a surge in issuance by governments and companies.

Ocorian stated that its analysis underlined the growing risk of concentration in public markets and the threat to investors looking to diversify.

US stock markets accounted for 84 per cent of the global rise in stock markets last year, with just 10 stocks accounting for a sixth of the global total market capitalisation at the end of 2024.

The value of assets across all private market asset classes rose last year except real estate, which fell by 2.5 per cent, while infrastructure recorded the biggest increase at 12.4 per cent, narrowly ahead of private equity at 11.6 per cent.

“The increase in global assets last year is the largest on record and is the equivalent of adding two European stock markets to the global asset pile in a year,” commented Ocorian chief executive officer, Chantal Free. “Last year’s increase equates to $2,959 for every person in the world.

“Most of the growth inevitably came from public markets as they are 16 times the size of their private counterparts. That size however is increasingly an issue with the concentration of major listed companies making it more challenging for investors to diversify.

“This is one factor behind the growth in private markets, as well as higher returns. The bigger picture however is that private markets have outstripped public markets in terms of long-term growth and are now 618 per cent bigger than in 2009, reflecting capital inflows as well as returns.

“The private capital industry is growing rapidly to meet the needs not just of companies around the world, but also of investors for whom public markets do not hold all the answers. The potential for continued growth in private capital is substantial, especially when compared to the current scale of public markets.

“This growth is supported by an accumulation of global wealth, with significant pools of capital concentrated in Asia and an acute demand for capital in strategic, high-growth regions such as the United States.”

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