Lincoln Index Shows Private Markets Up 2.8% in Q3 2026
Private company valuations rose for the quarter, but credit stress and higher interest rates are creating sharper divides across private markets.
Private market valuations climbed 2.8% in the third quarter of 2026, according to the Lincoln Private Market Index, as underlying earnings growth at private companies continued to provide support despite a challenging rate environment, Chicago-based investment banking advisory firm Lincoln International reported Monday.
The gains were accompanied by mounting evidence of credit strain, with higher interest rates exposing vulnerabilities in select corners of private markets. Lincoln International noted increasing differentiation across the asset class, suggesting that not all private companies are navigating the current environment equally well.
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The persistence of earnings growth among private firms has helped sustain valuations even as borrowing costs remain elevated. However, analysts tracking the space have broadly observed that stress tends to surface first in more leveraged businesses, and Lincoln's findings appear consistent with that pattern.
The index, which tracks the performance of private company equity, serves as a closely watched benchmark for investors and advisers operating outside public markets. Its quarterly readings offer one of the few systematic gauges of how privately held businesses are faring at a given point in time.
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