Fund managers hoping for a greater share of the spoils of private equity fundraising will be disappointed by the first quarter numbers.

The 10 largest PE funds to close accounted for more than half of the $90.9 billion quarterly total raised, dwarfing an average of 26.8% observed over the past decade, according to PitchBook’s Q1 2026 Global Private Market Fundraising Report.

Despite the return of mega-sized deals in 2025, the funds that made it across the finishing line were squarely focused on the middle market.

“This is consistent with a broader trend seen over the past couple of years: a retreat from the very largest funds, accompanied by a proportional rise in the $1 billion to $5 billion bracket among seasoned managers,” said Nicolas Moura, senior EMEA private capital research analyst at PitchBook.

He added that the middle market continues to offer more attractive entry multiples than the large-cap space, along with more managers capable of creating value through operational improvements.

Of the five largest funds to hold a final close in Q1, all could be considered specialists in a particular sector or geography.

The largest was the $6.45 billion Triton Fund VI, whose manager, Triton Partners, has been a clear winner from renewed investor interest in the defense and industrial sectors of Northern Europe.

Another beneficiary of the shift away from investing in the financial economy and toward the real economy is Greenbriar Equity Group, which raised 1.6 times as much for its seventh fund as it did for its predecessor. The firm buys midsized companies in the supply chain and advanced manufacturing sectors.

Rolling-12-month fundraising by PE funds declined for the eighth consecutive quarter. Around $385 billion was raised in the 12 months ending with Q1, a 29% decline from the previous period.

But the funds that are closing are doing so on average in 15.6 months, down from 18.1 months in 2024. This suggests that LPs will act with conviction when the right opportunity presents itself.

This article originally appeared on PitchBook News