Limited partners (LPs) are maintaining their commitment to private markets but are changing the way they build their portfolios. This is shown by a new study by Goldman Sachs Alternatives. The "Global Alternatives Survey 2026 - The LP View" is based on a survey of 225 LPs and other institutional investors conducted between June and August 2026. Respondents are increasingly using secondaries to manage liquidity, concentrating capital with existing managers and raising the bar for new managers.

Key findings:

• 84 percent of LPs plan to maintain or increase their investment activity, but are selecting strategies and managers more carefully.
• A lack of distributions is the biggest obstacle to new investments and is cited by more LPs than in the previous year.
• Geopolitics tops the list of risks for the third year in a row. LPs see AI as the strongest driver of change in alternative investments.

More than a third of LPs (37 percent) expect to invest more capital than in the previous year, while almost half (47 percent) intend to maintain their current pace. Only 11 percent of respondents expect to invest less. The bottleneck is liquidity: a lack of distributions is the most frequently cited factor influencing plans for new commitments, named by 35 percent of LPs.

Marc Nachmann, Global Head of Asset & Wealth Management at Goldman Sachs (quote, translated in substance): Clients remain disciplined in this dynamic risk environment. Investors are not retreating; they are rethinking where they invest capital, with whom and on what terms. Their confidence in private markets is unbroken, but they are more selective and focus on managers who can deliver target returns through active value creation.

The survey is the first part of a four-part series. The following editions will cover general partners (GPs), private credit and alternatives for retail.

This text was automatically translated from the German original.