Preqin's Private Capital Fund Terms Advisor 2026: Part 2, published on 20 October 2026, says mean headline management fees for buyout funds fell for a fifth straight year to a record low of 1.65% for 2026-vintage funds, while direct lending fees rose to a 10-year high of 1.50%.

TL;DR

  • Preqin, a BlackRock company, reports buyout mean headline management fees at a record 1.65% for 2026-vintage funds, the fifth annual fall, and direct lending at 1.50%, the fifth annual rise.
  • It also finds about 65% of 2020 to 2025 vintage venture capital funds have no hurdle rate, and premium carry structures in 56% of their fund agreements.
  • The public summary has no Asia-specific data and the full report is subscriber-only, so the APAC angle below is our interpretation, not a Preqin finding.

What did Preqin's fund terms report find?

Part 2 follows a first instalment on terms and governance and looks at how the fundraising environment affects fees, comparing headline management fee rates with fund performance. Preqin says it combines its own data, its Term Intelligence database and Freedom of Information Act requests. Beyond the headline fees, it says infrastructure funds led in offering early-commitment and large-commitment discounts in fund agreements, and real estate investors were the most likely to secure lower fees through side letters. A hurdle rate is the minimum return a fund must deliver before the manager earns carried interest.

How far have buyout fees fallen?

The 1.65% figure compares with a mean of 1.74% for 2024-vintage buyout funds and 1.85% in 2023, which was then the lowest on record, according to Opalesque's October 2024 coverage of an earlier Preqin report. Those figures come from different report editions, so treat the series as indicative rather than exact. Management fees are charged as a percentage of committed capital, typically through the first three to five years of a fund.

Why are direct lending fees moving the other way?

Preqin's public summary does not give a cause. Global Finance's September 2026 coverage of Preqin data reports a 2025 direct lending mean fee of 1.42% and a median of 1.50%, a different measure from the 1.50% mean in Part 2, so the two should not be compared directly. The same article says two-thirds of 2024 private credit capital went to the 20 largest funds, up from under half in 2020, and that early-investor or large-commitment discounts appeared in 33% of 2022 to 2024 vintage agreements against 41% for 2016 to 2018. Those data points may be relevant, but the sources do not say they explain the fee rise.

What should APAC allocators ask managers?

This section is editorial. Fee headlines are only part of the cost, so investors in Asia negotiating fund terms may want to ask for the hurdle rate, carry structure, any early or large-commitment discount and side letter terms alongside the headline fee. These are the same terms Preqin tracks. Our recent coverage of Asian private credit fundraising falling to a 12-year low (https://www.altassetasia.com/asian-private-credit-fundraising-falls-to-a-12-year-low-in-h1-2026-what-apac-investors-should-ask/), Bain Capital's record Asia Fund VI close (https://www.altassetasia.com/bain-capital-closes-asia-fund-vi-at-a-record-10-5-billion-what-it-signals-for-the-regions-private-equity-market/) and Preqin's Performance Pulse H2 2026 (https://www.altassetasia.com/preqin-performance-pulse-h2-2026-private-credit-returns-8-3-but-growth-slows-and-pe-liquidity-stays-tight/) gives the regional fundraising and returns backdrop. No source reviewed shows how Asia-focused funds compare with the global averages.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the average buyout management fee in 2026?

Preqin reports a mean headline management fee of 1.65% for 2026-vintage buyout funds, a record low and the fifth straight annual fall.

Have private credit fees gone up?

For direct lending, Preqin reports a mean headline management fee of 1.50%, a 10-year high and the fifth straight annual rise. Other Preqin-based data cited by Global Finance shows a 2025 mean of 1.42%, on a different measure.

Do these fee figures apply to Asia?

Not necessarily. Preqin's public summary gives no Asia-specific figures, so Asian funds may differ from the global means.

Sources and Method

This is an original rewrite based on Preqin's report page of 20 October 2026 (https://www.preqin.com/insights/research/reports/private-capital-fund-terms-advisor-2026-part-2), cross-checked against Opalesque's October 2024 report on an earlier Preqin study by Bailey McCann (https://www.opalesque.com/705812/Private_capital_fees_bow_to_fundraising_pressure_in581.html) and Global Finance's article of 18 September 2026 by Thomas Monteiro (https://gfmag.com/private-credit/private-credit-fees-tick-higher/). We could read only the public summary, as the charts and full report are behind a subscriber paywall, and we did not find independent coverage of the 2026 Part 2 figures. This is not investment advice.