Growth Equity

The Private Decade

Where this generation of great companies was built, and how advisors are getting there.

For most of the last ten years, the case for growth equity was a projection. More of the value was being created before the IPO, the argument went, so investors needed to be there earlier. Reasonable, but unproven. In June 2026, SpaceX listed at roughly $1.77 trillion after twenty-four years as a private company, and the projection became a public record.¹

17.7x

SpaceX valuation growth, Oct 2021 to IPO

~90%

Annualized in the final private stretch

83%

Of 2025 US venture value went to deals backed by nontraditional investors²

Advisor Access

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Understand where value is being created, who is underwriting it, and the five questions to ask a growth manager.

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For informational and educational purposes only. Not an offer to sell or a solicitation to buy any security.

What Is Inside

This summer provided a notable case study supporting the growth equity discussion.

Seven private companies outran the Magnificent Seven

According to Forge Global, its Private Magnificent 7 cohort increased approximately 96% during the period compared with approximately 34% for the public Magnificent Seven. Figures are based on different valuation methodologies and are presented for illustrative purposes only.³

The quality of the manager set has changed

Nontraditional investors took part in thirty percent of US venture deals in 2025 and accounted for eighty-three percent of the value.⁴

Where the honest risk sits

Only nine percent of 2021 vintage funds had distributed anything three years in. Dispersion is the story, and entry price drives it.

Five questions for a growth manager

Scale, entry, staying power, access, and the overlap question most advisors have not thought to ask.

Sources & References

CNBC, June 3, 2026; TechCrunch, July 8, 2025.
CNBC.COM
NVCA/PitchBook 2026 Yearbook, Apr. 13, 2026.
NVCA.ORG
Forge Global, "Forge Global Announces the 2025 Edition of the Private Magnificent 7," September 19, 2025 — the Private Magnificent 7 (Anduril, Anthropic, Databricks, OpenAI, SpaceX, Stripe, and xAI) grew 96% over the trailing year versus 34% growth for the Public Magnificent 7 (Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, NVIDIA, and Tesla), for the twelve months ended September 2025.
FORGEGLOBAL.COM
NVCA/PitchBook 2026 Yearbook, Apr. 13, 2026.
NVCA.ORG