Private-market aktiva
Private Equity · Venture Capital · Illiquid Stakes
Ownership stakes or investments that are not traded on a public exchange — their value is not determined by a daily market price, but by an estimate (mark) at the time of individual transactions.
What it is
Private-market assets are investments in companies or funds that are not publicly traded — private equity stakes, venture capital investments, private credit (private lending), or direct ownership of unlisted subsidiaries.
Unlike publicly traded stocks, where the price is visible at any point during the trading day, the value of a private-market asset is determined by marks — value estimates derived from the last financing round, comparable transactions, or an internal valuation model. Marks are updated irregularly (typically quarterly), not continuously.
Why track it
Companies that hold significant private-market assets (e.g. a financial holding with a venture portfolio, or a conglomerate with an unlisted subsidiary) carry this portion of value in their accounts at marks, not at market price — this is the input for NAV in a SOTP valuation of such a segment.
Marks on private-market assets tend to lag the public market — during a public market downturn, private asset marks remain unchanged longer because the last transaction occurred earlier, under better conditions.
Real-world example
A financial holding owns a 15% stake in an unlisted fintech startup, marked at $50m based on the last financing round 18 months ago. If the public market for similar companies has since fallen by a third, the actual value of the stake today is likely lower than the accounting mark shows.
Watch out for
A "last financing round" mark is a point in time, not a continuous market price — it may be stale by months or even years. For private-market assets on a balance sheet, always consider how old the valuation is and whether a material change in the sector or the specific company has occurred since then.