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S&P Global Expands into Private Markets with $1.8 Billion Acquisition
S&P Global has reached an agreement to acquire With Intelligence, a private markets data provider, for $1.8 billion. The deal strengthens S&P Global’s position in alternative asset analytics and signals continued consolidation across the global financial data industry.
Founded in 1998, With Intelligence delivers proprietary data and insights to investment professionals, covering the relationships between limited partners, general partners, and intermediaries within private equity, hedge funds, and venture capital. The company serves more than 3,000 clients worldwide, including fund managers, institutional investors, and advisors.
The acquisition reflects S&P Global’s intent to build a broader presence in private market information at a time when alternative assets are expanding toward an estimated $40 trillion by the end of the decade.
Strengthening Coverage Across Private Markets
With Intelligence gathers and organizes data directly from allocators and fund managers, providing structured information that supports deal origination, fundraising, and market research. Its integration into S&P Global will extend the buyer’s data coverage beyond traditional public markets, adding granular visibility into privately held investments.
The acquisition is designed to merge S&P Global’s established analytical infrastructure with With Intelligence’s network-driven datasets. Combining these strengths could create a comprehensive view of capital allocation flows, fund performance, and investor engagement within the private markets ecosystem.
According to industry analysts, such integration could also enhance transparency in a segment that remains largely opaque compared to public equity or fixed income.
Strategic Fit for S&P Global
The move aligns with S&P Global’s broader strategy of expanding its data and analytics capabilities across asset classes. The company already holds a strong position in credit ratings, benchmarks, and financial intelligence. Extending into private markets complements those areas by addressing a growing demand for standardized insights among institutional investors and asset managers.
The acquisition also underscores a broader industry pattern in which financial data firms are seeking to bridge information gaps between public and private markets. As investors diversify into alternative assets such as private credit, infrastructure, and venture capital, reliable data becomes increasingly valuable for portfolio construction and risk management.
By incorporating With Intelligence’s proprietary databases and workflow tools, S&P Global gains direct access to intelligence derived from fund managers and allocators, improving the timeliness and accuracy of its private market coverage.
Private Markets: A Growing Frontier for Data Providers
Private markets have expanded rapidly over the past decade, fueled by low interest rates and the search for yield beyond public equities. Even as monetary conditions tightened, institutional investors maintained significant allocations to private equity, private credit, and real assets.
This growth has created strong demand for consistent and verified data — an area historically fragmented by manual reporting and limited disclosure. Market participants rely on private data firms to aggregate fundraising activity, investor sentiment, and deal pipelines.
With Intelligence has specialized in building structured datasets from direct industry sources. Its focus on transparency and standardized information mirrors a broader trend in fintech and financial services, where digital tools are replacing manual reporting systems.
For S&P Global, integrating this data into its existing analytics engine allows clients to compare private and public performance metrics using unified methodologies.
Background on With Intelligence
With Intelligence emerged in the late 1990s as an information service for hedge fund professionals. Over time, it expanded into private equity, venture capital, and institutional asset management, developing data platforms and subscription products that help users identify investment trends and benchmark performance.
The company secured a majority investment from Motive Partners in 2023, which supported its global expansion and product development. Its revenue is expected to reach $130 million in 2025, according to company projections shared during the announcement.
Today, its clients span general partners seeking fundraising intelligence, limited partners sourcing investment opportunities, and intermediaries coordinating cross-border transactions. The firm’s network-based model depends on first-hand data collection rather than secondary aggregation, an approach that has made it a valued resource for private market participants.
How the Acquisition Advances S&P Global’s Model
S&P Global’s acquisition of With Intelligence extends its reach into one of the fastest-growing segments of finance. Private market data provides complementary insight to S&P’s existing coverage in credit and public markets, supporting more integrated analytics for investors navigating complex portfolios.
The firm has been building its capacity in private assets through internal product development and partnerships. Adding With Intelligence consolidates those efforts under a single platform, allowing the company to deliver what it calls “end-to-end data and connectivity” across asset types.
For clients, this means enhanced tools for evaluating fund performance, benchmarking strategies, and tracking investment flows. For S&P Global, the move brings new recurring revenue streams and access to an expanding customer base within private capital.
Industry Context and Competitive Implications
The acquisition continues a wave of consolidation among global financial data providers. Larger firms have sought to expand coverage and strengthen their positions by acquiring niche specialists with proprietary datasets.
This deal follows several transactions across the sector, where analytics companies have targeted providers serving private equity and venture markets. The rationale is consistent: as alternative assets become mainstream, comprehensive data coverage is essential for investors and service providers alike.
Analysts expect that S&P Global’s entry into private market intelligence will put competitive pressure on established rivals, including firms that have traditionally dominated public market analytics. The company’s global distribution network and technology infrastructure give it a strong foundation to scale the newly acquired data assets.
Expanding Transparency in Alternative Assets
The global stock of alternative assets has grown steadily, reaching trillions in total value as investors diversify their portfolios. However, information on these holdings remains fragmented. S&P Global’s move aims to reduce opacity by linking data from fund managers, allocators, and advisors through structured systems.
Greater transparency could help address ongoing challenges such as valuation consistency, reporting standards, and liquidity assessment. As regulators and investors call for more accountability in private markets, comprehensive data sources are becoming central to compliance and risk oversight.
With Intelligence’s integration may also support S&P Global’s efforts to develop benchmarks and analytics for private asset classes, bringing methodologies long used in public markets into alternative investment analysis.
Outlook
S&P Global’s acquisition of With Intelligence marks a significant step in its diversification strategy. The company gains an established presence in the growing private markets data segment, expanding its ability to serve both institutional and intermediary clients.
The transaction also reflects the broader evolution of financial information services, where data providers increasingly merge technology, analytics, and direct market intelligence.
For S&P Global, the challenge will lie in blending its established processes with the agility of a specialized firm while maintaining the rigor that defines its brand. If successful, the integration could set a new standard for how data supports transparency, strategy, and innovation across private markets worldwide.
