Q2 2024 Forge Investment
Outlook

For Professional Investors Only

Road to Recovery: Private Market Accelerates in Q1

April 18, 2024

The private market gained momentum in Q1 2024, propelled by high-profile exits, increasing buyer demand, and optimism for a reawakening IPO market.

Inside the Report
  • Market Performance — See how the Forge Private Market Index performed relative to public market indices, along with private market returns by sector and company

  • Secondary Market Activity — Gain an in-depth look at quarterly changes in private market premium/discount levels, bid-ask spreads, and right of first refusal (ROFR) data

  • Primary Market Activity — Get insights into fundraising trends, including amount raised, valuations, time between rounds, and how investors are seeking greater protections

  • Mutual Fund Marks — See notable changes in how large asset managers are valuing their private market holdings

  • Exit Activity — Get a snapshot of IPOs and other exits during the quarter, including analysis of pricing levels

The Forge Private Market Index was up 4.5% in Q1

During Q1 2024, the Forge Private Market Index was up 4.5%, driven by prominent IPOs and 10 names that were marked up by more than 20%.

Forge Private Market Index posts most individual company markups since Q4 2021

The first quarter saw the highest percentage of marked-up companies in the Forge Private Market Index in over two years, while the magnitude of the positive performance of marked-up companies outpaced the negative performance of marked-down companies.

In notable shift, the proportion of Buy IOIs reached a 28-month high

In March, the percentage of buy-side IOIs on Forge Markets hit 61%, the highest level since August 2021. Forge also saw a 45% increase in the overall number of IOIs submitted to the platform in Q1 2024 compared to Q4 2023.

Authors
Andrew Alden, CFA
Senior Director of Quantitative Research, Forge

Prior to joining Forge, Andrew launched Semantiqa, an investment management firm focused on the public-market growth equities space. Andrew has also held researcher positions at WeatherStorm Capital and Lattice Strategies (now Hartford Funds).

Dan Chaparian
VP, Product Marketing, Forge

Before joining Forge, Dan was VP, Global Product Marketing, for BlackRock's iShares ETF business. He previously held positions at Apple and Uber and is a former startup founder.

Craig Derbenwick
Senior Director, Content Strategy, Forge

Prior to his role at Forge, Craig was a marketing consultant serving global and boutique investment management and fintech clients. He has also held marketing roles at UBS Asset Management, Brookfield Asset Management, and Envestnet Asset Management.

Riley Martin
Senior Data Analyst, Forge

Before joining Forge, Riley was a Consultant for Strategy and Analytics at Deloitte assisting large tech clients with in-depth analysis of global data.

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The performance shown represents past performance, and past performance is not indicative of future results. Investing in private company securities is not suitable for all investors, is highly speculative, involves a high degree of risk, and you should be prepared to withstand a total loss of your investment. Private company securities are highly illiquid and there is no guarantee that a market will develop for such securities. Each investment also carries its own specific risks and investors should conduct their own, independent due diligence regarding the investment, including obtaining additional information about the company, opinions, financial projections and legal or investment advice. Accordingly, investing in private company securities is appropriate only for those investors who can tolerate a high degree of risk and do not require a liquid investment.

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