investment capabilities

Investment Capabilities

Being a significant, long-term investor in all areas of private equity provides Adams Street Partners with a meaningful information advantage. We’re an active participant in the global private equity business, including primary partnership investments, secondary partnership investments and direct investments in portfolio companies.

Adams Street Partners invests in private equity partnerships and portfolio companies, creating a portfolio diversified by time, manager and subclass.

Adams Street Partners provides the following capabilities to its clients:
  • Global portfolio diversification
  • Preferred access to private equity partnership investments
  • Access to secondary partnership opportunities
  • Access to high-quality direct venture capital investments
  • Unparalleled experience and reputation
  • An independent and employee-owned firm

Approximately 15-25 U.S., 10-20 non-U.S. primary partnership investments and 8-12 direct investments will be made within a global portfolio during each year, diversified by subclass. In addition, secondary investments in private equity partnerships are included on an opportunistic basis.

In a global portfolio, we actively overweight those subclasses and stages where we estimate higher returns can be achieved and underweight those in which we estimate lower returns will be generated. Adams Street Partners believes a portfolio diversified by time, subclass and manager should produce superior returns with lower risk.


U.S. Fund of Funds Partnership

Our U.S. Strategy will be allocated to private equity partnership investments that in turn invest a substantial portion of their assets in North American companies.

Non-U.S. Fund of Funds Partnership

Our Non-U.S. Strategy will be allocated to private equity partnership investments that in turn invest a substantial portion of their assets in non-North American companies.

Direct Investments

Since 1972, Adams Street Partners has made over 140 direct investments with experienced management teams in high-growth markets. Investments are made primarily in venture-backed companies in the technology, life sciences and technology-enabled services sectors.

Secondary Investments

As a pioneer in the development of the secondary market, Adams Street Partners has been providing liquidity solutions to sophisticated private equity investors since 1986.