News (w/e 10/31/25)
GIC Tests the Secondaries Market with $1 Billion LP-Stakes Sale
Singapore’s GIC—one of the most disciplined LPs on the planet—is quietly unloading $1 billion in fund stakes across 30 PE managers. When even a sovereign wealth fund wants liquidity, that’s not noise—it’s a tell. The secondaries market has gone from tidy housekeeping to triage. Discounts are widening, NAVs are soft, and distributions have slowed to a crawl. Call it what it is: the world’s most patient money deciding it’s done waiting. Link
Morgan Stanley Buys EquityZen to Expand in Private-Market Liquidity
Morgan Stanley is buying EquityZen, the private-shares bazaar for startup insiders who want off the ride before IPOs that never come. Wall Street smelled blood in the water—millions of paper-rich, cash-poor employees sitting on unicorn stock with no exit. EquityZen built the plumbing; Morgan Stanley’s about to turn it into a pipeline. This isn’t a fintech acquisition—it’s a liquidity land grab. The banks are circling the private markets like hyenas around a dying zebra.Link
Grafine Partners Backs New GP, Atlantic Ridge Capital, in Industrial Lower-Mid-Market
Grafine Partners just seeded Atlantic Ridge Capital, another lower-middle-market industrial play—$50 million to $500 million EV targets, old-school manufacturing and distribution. Grafine’s pitch is that new GPs are the only ones left hungry enough to work for carry. They’re probably right. The incumbents are bloated, over-tooled, and allergic to operational grit. Atlantic Ridge will chase what’s left of the American backbone—factories, welders, dust. It’s a bet that blue-collar EBITDA still beats PowerPoint EBITDA. Link
Private Credit Tightens as Tariffs Push Corporate “Right-Sizing”
Private credit was supposed to be the savior after the banks tapped out. Instead, lenders are getting spooked. Trump-era tariffs, sticky inflation, and flatlining demand have made leverage a four-letter word again. Spreads are up, covenants are back, and “add-on” has become PE’s version of “maybe next year.” The roll-up merchants who built empires on cheap debt are now discovering what happens when interest expense eats your thesis. Link
Senators Warren and Sanders Target Private Equity in Retirement Plans
Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders dusted off their favorite villain—private equity—and sent regulators a love letter about “protecting workers” from high-fee, illiquid assets in 401(k)s. Translation: populist theater with a side of grandstanding. Still, it’s a reminder that Washington can always find time to scold capitalism’s dark arts. PE firms pushing retail access might want to cool the marketing—no one wants their logo in a Senate hearing slideshow. Link