Nasdaq Private Markets (NPM) says that initial public offering (IPO) type liquidity is now available in both primary and secondary markets. This means private firms may remain private for longer as they push toward becoming public companies.
IPOs in the US have declined in recent years. This is largely due to the high cost, driven by excessive compliance demands, which means only the largest firms seek to become reporting companies. Today, with an ocean of private capital willing to fund private firms as they grow, the most promising of these firms seek to remain private for as long as possible, with some never wanting to go public.
NPM reports that in 2025, secondary markets saw tenders (structured) top $35 billion, with IPOs slightly higher at $45 billion.
Meanwhile, private markets like NPM enable a level of liquidity for early shareholders, frequently early employees, who need some cash or want to diversify their holdings. Additionally, block trades settled through NPM more than doubled from 2024 to 2025, highlighting the growth of private marketplaces.
NPM states that “secondaries are no longer second fiddle” as GP-led secondaries hit $47 billion in the first half of 2025, up 68%. For LP-led secondaries, this jumped by 40%, hitting $56 billion.
While private firms can control some trading in their shares, NPM reports that issuers that allow shares to trade typically experience an increase in their share price. This supports more trading as firms see value in a stronger price.
2026 is poised to be a big year for IPOs, with private markets already foreshadowing this with firms like SpaceX, OpenAI, Kraken, and others in the queue.
The current leadership at the Securities and Exchange Commission intends to improve primary markets as well as secondaries. The two sides of the capital equation can benefit US markets. At the same time, anticipated changes to the definition of an Accredited Investor may broaden access to secondaries, enabling smaller investors to gain exposure to the asset class, which reportedly generates 55% of value creation before these firms go public.
