[New Study] Independent Sponsors: Investment Characteristics and Performance

A first-of-its-kind look at independent sponsor investment outcomes 

Independent sponsors have become an increasingly important force in lower middle-market private equity, but until now, there has been limited large-scale research on how these investments are structured, who is leading them, and how they perform.

The Institute for Private Capital, in collaboration with SBIA, surveyed independent sponsors and capital providers to analyze 846 independent sponsor investments. The study examines sponsor backgrounds, transaction characteristics, investment size, gross TVPI, IRR, and risk-adjusted performance compared with other private investments.

The findings offer a rare data-driven view into a growing segment of the private capital market, including evidence that independent sponsor investments have generally produced attractive returns without meaningfully greater downside risk.

Download the study below.