US private equity fundraising has remained mostly unhindered by volatile global markets through the first half of 2022, making it somewhat of an outlier in the PE industry as falling valuations and macroeconomic tension hinder deal activity.

Private equity firms are currently in what PitchBook analysts call "perhaps the most crowded fundraising market in history," according to our latest US PE Breakdown. Firms raised $176 billion across 191 funds in the first six months of 2022, setting a pace that, if sustained, could surpass last year's total fund value of nearly $340 billion across 577 funds.
   
As the fundraising climate remains congested, many of the largest GPs are prioritizing capital commitments with their longest-running relationships, meaning that the largest and most established PE firms are better set up to see their fundraising efforts succeed, according to the report.

Further, many firms are pushing the final close on funds from late 2022 to early 2023, allowing GPs to tap into next year's allocated dollars, as many have already committed their total PE investment budget for this year.
   
Q2 saw the closing of a few mega-funds—defined as vehicles of $5 billion or more—including Advent International's $25 billion fund and KKR's $19 billion vehicle. More mega-funds are expected to wrap up this year, including Blackstone's $30.3 billion real estate fund, which The Wall Street Journal has reported as nearing its final close. It would be the largest real estate fund ever.

Through the first half of this year, mega-funds accounted for the smallest share of total fund count, but made up a majority of total fundraising value, raising $102.8 billion.

Seven mega-funds have so far closed this year, right on pace with 2021's total of 14. Mega-fund value could reach a new record this year. Through Q2, that value has already made up nearly 70% of 2021's total of nearly $150 billion.

Related read: Charting US PE's performance in Q2

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This article originally appeared on PitchBook News