Best Private Placement Agency in 2026: 12 Firms Compared

A private placement agency raises money for a fund or a company from institutional investors, outside a public offering, and is paid by the issuer it acts for. Twelve firms that do that work are compared here, and spectup is the best pick for a low or mid-market fund, or a company with revenue raising privately.

This comparison is for GPs and fund managers raising a fund, for CFOs raising growth capital privately, and for listed issuers weighing a placement. I am Edwin Mik, Partner and Head of IR at spectup. The other eleven firms follow in the order five checks give, each one taken from the firm's own pages.

What does a private placement agency do for a fund or a company?

The agent prepares the offering materials, builds a list of investors who fit, runs the approach and the diligence through to signing. It acts for the issuer, and the issuer pays it. What a mandate includes at spectup, and how it is paid, is on our private placement agent page.

Who the agent brings to the table depends on the issuer:

• For a fund: pension funds, endowments, insurers and family offices buying LP interests.
• For a company: growth equity funds, credit funds and family offices buying shares or notes.

Fund placement agents work the first group; a few of the private placement agencies here work both. Firms that raise for companies are compared in our capital raising firms comparison.

In the United States this work is regulated, and the SEC's guide to broker-dealer registration names persons who "act as “placement agents” for private placements of securities" among those who may have to register. The SEC's page on Rule 506(b) notes that an offering under that rule cannot use general solicitation, so an agent approaches investors it already knows, or reaches them through channels the rules allow.

Fund formation is not placement work. At spectup it stays with the manager's counsel: the structure, the limited partner agreement and the regulatory filings.

How we compared the twelve private placement agencies

spectup ranks first, as the best private placement agency for a low or mid-market fund or a company raising privately: it is the only one of the twelve that meets all five checks. The other eleven are the fund placement agents a manager meets first when looking for one. All twelve were checked on five things a buyer can confirm before the first call:

1. Size stated: its own pages give a fund or raise size it takes.
2. Mandate range: it names at least three of four kinds of work: new funds, secondaries or continuation funds, directs or co-investment, GP stakes or GP capital.
3. Cumulative record: it publishes a total of capital raised, placed or advised.
4. Fee basis stated: its site or a client-facing filing says what its fee is built on.
5. Own technology and media: a point for software, a data system or a template product it built that does part of its clients' work or that clients use (a free calculator, quiz or other free tool on the firm's site does not count). A point for media published under the firm's own name with a stated schedule or an archive: a newsletter, a podcast, a video series or a research series. A bare signup form with no frequency and no archive does not count.

7 columns. Drag the table sideways; the first column stays put.

Equal points go to the firm with the higher verified review score on Clutch, Trustpilot or G2 (its best profile with five or more reviews; the score first, then the number of reviews). A firm without such a profile follows those that have one; then alphabetical order. A parent group's profile does not count, and none of the tied firms has a profile of its own, so each tie here is alphabetical.

The checks reward what a firm publishes. A firm that publishes little can still be the right agent for a large fund; read the scores as a measure of what you can confirm before the first call.

1. spectup: best private placement agency for low and mid-market funds and companies

spectup places capital for funds, companies and listed issuers as a private placement agent. For a fund manager that means a new fund, a co-invest sleeve or a continuation fund whose track record an LP can diligence; for a company, growth equity or structured private debt with revenue behind it; for a listed issuer, PIPEs, registered directs and follow-on placements. Each mandate is sized to the client.

The investor side is a network in three layers: 440+ relationships from transactions we closed, the 2,500+ investors and LPs clients met, and the LP books of 30+ partner firms. Across every mandate since 2022 spectup has advised, raised or placed $760M+, by its own count, and spectup has 4.9/5 on Clutch from 18 reviews. The fee is a monthly retainer plus a capped placement fee at close, and it is stated on spectup's own page before the first call.

2. Eaton Partners, Stifel's fund placement group

Eaton Partners is a private placement agency founded in 1983 and part of Stifel since January 2016. It places private funds and hedge funds, advises on GP-led secondaries and LP interest sales, and raises direct equity, typically $25M to $250M per raise. Eaton MarketPlace, an online investor platform it launched, is linked from the Stifel fund placement page.

Its page says it works with established and emerging managers on first-time institutional funds, across private equity, private credit, real estate, real assets and hedge funds. By its own count it has raised over $140 billion across more than 190 funds and offerings since 1983, with 60+ professionals reaching over 4,500 institutional investors.

3. Rede Partners, the partner-owned London agent

Rede Partners is a private placement agency founded in London in 2011, 100% partner-owned, with six offices from London to Dubai. It runs primary fundraising, GP-led secondaries and strategic equity, and has a dedicated Climate and Impact business. Investors follow the funds it is raising on RedeWire, an online LP portal it runs.

It reports over EUR 140bn raised since 2011, and over EUR 99bn and 59 final closes in primary fundraising alone. Its disclosure says pay is generally based on capital commitments and paid by the manager. Mergermarket named it Placement Agent of the Year at the European Private Equity Awards 2026, the third year running.

4. Asante Capital Group, primary funds and secondaries from one team

Asante Capital Group is a private placement agency that has run primary fundraising as its core business since 2010, alongside GP-led and LP-led secondaries, NAV financings and single-asset deals, from offices in London, New York, Hong Kong, Munich and Los Angeles.

It reports $163bn raised and advised across 210 funds and transactions, and over $87bn in primary fundraising alone. It says it raises both established and first-time funds, and its SEC marketing-rule disclosure sets out a placement fee on commitments and a possible retainer. In September 2026 it closed Lakeshore Capital Fund III at its $305m hard cap.

5. Monument Group, partner-owned since 1994

Monument Group, founded in 1994, is a private placement agency that is independent and partner-owned, with 17 partners and offices in Boston, London, Amsterdam and Tokyo. It runs primary fundraisings, LP secondaries, GP-led transactions and capital solutions, and says it takes select, non-conflicting mandates. MG Connect, its own password-protected portal, serves pre-qualified institutional investors.

Since 1994 it reports over $152 billion raised across more than 250 funds and transactions. On 9 October 2026 it announced the close of Consonance Private Equity III at $1.35 billion.

6. Campbell Lutyens, the fund placement specialist

Campbell Lutyens was founded in London in 1988 by John Campbell, Richard Lutyens and Bill Dacombe. It places private equity, infrastructure and private credit funds, has run a secondaries practice since 1999, and advises on GP capital.

By its own count it has raised more than $366 billion for over 322 funds, with 363 colleagues in offices across Europe, the US, Asia, Australia and the Middle East. In July 2026 it worked on a single-asset continuation vehicle of about $600m for I Squared Capital. It is owned by its team today; on 30 April 2026 Lazard agreed to acquire it, with closing expected in 2026.

7. First Avenue Partners, the independent global agent

First Avenue Partners was founded in London in 2006 and is independent and privately owned, with regulated entities in the UK, the US, Hong Kong and Germany. It places private funds, private companies and secondaries, typically on global mandates, across private equity, private credit, real estate and real assets.

By its own count it has facilitated over $100bn since 2006, a figure it footnotes as accumulated fund sizes. Its disclosure says its pay comes from the fund sponsor and rises with capital committed.

8. PJT Park Hill, PJT Partners' fund advisory business

Park Hill started in 2005 inside Blackstone and was spun off with PJT Partners on 1 October 2015. It raises primary funds across private equity, infrastructure, real estate and credit, runs GP-led and LP-led secondaries, and places direct and co-investments.

Among the results it lists are Veritas Capital Fund IX at $14.4 billion, Linden Capital Partners VI at $5.4 billion and a $195 million direct placement. Its broker-dealer's Form CRS says the fee is typically an agreed percentage of the amount raised.

9. Evercore Private Funds Group, placement and secondaries inside Evercore

Evercore runs primary fund placement through its Private Funds Group and secondaries through its Private Capital Advisory team, inside an investment bank founded in 1995 with offices in 16 countries.

It publishes a list of dated transactions: on 15 June 2026 it advised Clearlake Capital Group on its $14.8bn Fund VIII fundraise, and on 6 October 2026 it closed LS Power Equity Partners VI as global placement agent, the latest fund placement on its list.

The largest names list single raises above eight billion dollars, and the independents publish their fee basis and record more often than the bank groups. For a low or mid-market fund, ask any private placement agency for its smallest recent close.

10. Probitas Partners, the independent agent for established and emerging managers

Probitas Partners was founded in 2001 and describes itself as an independent, global advisory and alternatives placement firm, with offices in San Francisco, New York, Hong Kong and London. It covers primary funds, single-asset capital, continuation vehicles, tender offers, strip sales and co-invest syndication.

It reports $134 billion raised for over 175 managers, from established sponsors to emerging managers, and topped Private Debt Investor's 2024 ranking of private debt fundraisers. Its most recent listed close is Cinven Strategic Fund 2 at EUR 2.3bn in August 2026.

11. UBS Private Funds Group, the placement group inside UBS

UBS's Private Funds Group has placed funds since 1998, across private equity, venture, growth, energy, private debt, infrastructure and real estate. Secondary market advice and GP capital advice sit in the same group, and it lists sovereign wealth funds, consultants, pensions, endowments, family offices and insurers among the investors it reaches.

UBS completed its acquisition of Credit Suisse in June 2023. Its page describes the group's coverage and investor reach and gives no capital total or fee basis.

12. Lazard Private Capital Advisory, the secondaries group inside Lazard

Lazard's Private Capital Advisory group is the private placement agency inside Lazard Financial Advisory, covering primary fundraising and secondaries. It advised KKR on a $2.2 billion single-asset continuation fund for Internet Brands, a deal that won Secondaries Deal of the Year awards.

Lazard dates to 1848. Once the Campbell Lutyens deal closes, the combined Lazard CL will have more than 300 professionals; its pro forma figure of over $190 billion raised in two years covers both firms. Until then, Lazard says, coverage teams and ongoing engagements remain unchanged.

How spectup runs a private placement mandate

A spectup mandate has five workstreams: capital strategy, valuation and positioning, offering materials, investor targeting and outreach, then diligence and close. The materials are the PPM, the investor deck, the financial model, the term sheet and the data room.

The mandate is signed in week 1, positioning runs in weeks 2 to 3 and the materials in weeks 3 to 5. A fund placement typically runs eight to twelve months from signing the mandate to the close, and the size of the raise decides where in that range it lands; a company raise typically runs five to eight months.

The fee follows the same line: eight to twelve monthly retainers while a fund placement runs, then one placement fee that is capped and defined in the mandate and falls due at the close when the capital has arrived.

We act for one side: spectup has no proprietary products or fund affiliations, and no distribution agreements. For how the role works across a fund's raise, see how placement agents work in private equity.

What should you ask a private placement agency before you sign?

1. 01
   What is the smallest fund or raise you have closed in the last two years?
2. 02
   Which investors on your list have committed to a fund like mine, and when?
3. 03
   Who on your team runs the mandate week to week?
4. 04
   How is the success fee calculated, and is it capped?
5. 05
   Which offering documents do you draft, and which does our counsel draft? The private placement memorandum is the one to settle first.
6. 06
   What happens to the retainer if the raise stalls?

Which private placement agency fits your raise?

2 columns. Drag the table sideways; the first column stays put.

For a flagship fund, start with firms that list a single deal above eight billion dollars: First Avenue Partners lists a $15bn infrastructure fund, Evercore a $14.8bn fundraise, PJT Park Hill a $14.4bn fund, Asante Capital Group a $9.3bn raise, Eaton Partners an $8.5bn fund and Campbell Lutyens a EUR 8.08bn fund. For a GP-led continuation vehicle, Lazard and Campbell Lutyens lead their pages with that work.

For a first institutional fund, Eaton Partners and Asante Capital Group both say they raise first-time funds, Probitas Partners names emerging managers, and UBS Private Funds Group lists first-time funds among the raises it covers.

What LPs told us about backing emerging managers is in our LP sentiment study. For an independent agent with a global LP book, compare First Avenue Partners, Rede Partners and Monument Group. For a low or mid-market fund, or a company with revenue raising privately, start with spectup and ask us the six questions above.