Blackstone (NYSE:BX) executives used the firm’s fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 investor call to highlight record financial results, a sharp pickup in fundraising, and early signs of a reopening in capital markets that could support higher realizations in 2026 and beyond.
Record year for distributable earnings, fundraising, and AUM
Weston Tucker, Head of Shareholder Relations, said Blackstone reported GAAP net income of $2.0 billion for the quarter and distributable earnings (DE) of $2.2 billion, or $1.75 per common share. The firm declared a $1.49 per-share dividend paid to holders of record as of February 9.
Blackstone’s fundraising lifted assets under management 13% year-over-year to nearly $1.3 trillion (later cited as $1,275 billion on the call). Executives repeatedly emphasized investment performance as the core driver of growth, as well as a backdrop shaped by tariff uncertainty, geopolitical instability, and what Schwarzman described as “the longest government shutdown in U.S. history.”
Investment themes: AI infrastructure, investment-grade private credit, and select geographies
Schwarzman said Blackstone’s scale—spanning more than 270 portfolio companies, nearly 13,000 real estate assets, and a large credit platform—provides proprietary data that informs the firm’s view of economic fundamentals. He said the firm has leaned into thematic areas including digital infrastructure (data centers), power and electrification, private credit, life sciences, and regional opportunities in India and Japan.
Schwarzman said Blackstone invested $138 billion across the firm in 2025, the highest in four years, and completed eight privatizations across private equity and real estate. He highlighted a fourth-quarter transaction to privatize medical technology company Hologic for $18 billion. In credit, he described record deployment and an expanding opportunity in “customized long-duration capital solutions for investment-grade corporates.”
Signs of a reopening in IPOs and M&A
Schwarzman and President/COO John Gray argued that moderating costs of capital are helping restart transaction activity. Schwarzman cited an increase in global IPO issuance in the fourth quarter and said Blackstone contributed with the $7.2 billion IPO of Medline, which he called the largest IPO since 2021 and the largest sponsor-backed IPO in history. He said shares traded up over 40% on the first day.
In Q&A, management said the IPO pipeline is expected to be concentrated primarily in corporate assets, with a focus on energy and electricity-related “picks and shovels,” and likely more U.S.-focused, while also anticipating activity in India. Schwarzman said returning cash to limited partners supports fundraising by improving liquidity profiles and rebuilding what he called a “virtuous cycle.”
Asked about sponsor-backed M&A, Schwarzman said strategics appear more active, aided by stronger equity markets and what he described as a more conducive regulatory environment for antitrust review. He also noted improved real estate transaction activity and suggested momentum could build later in the year.
Business highlights across channels and strategies
Gray described three reinforcing trends: an improving deal environment, “generational” AI-related opportunities for private capital, and deeper adoption of private markets across institutions, insurance, and individuals.
- Infrastructure: Blackstone’s infrastructure platform grew 40% year-over-year to $77 billion, raising over $4 billion in Q4. Gray said the BIP strategy has generated 18% net returns annually since inception seven years ago, with QTS data centers cited as a key driver.
- BXMA (multi-asset investing): Gray said BXMA’s largest strategy posted positive performance for 23 straight quarters and exceeded 13% gross return for both 2025 and 2024. BXMA gathered $6.3 billion of net inflows in 2025, lifting AUM to $96 billion.
- Credit: Gray said the credit platform manages $520 billion of assets, up 15% year-over-year, with over $140 billion of inflows in 2025. He highlighted a secular shift toward investment-grade private credit, where Blackstone manages $130 billion, up 30% year-over-year.
- Insurance: Insurance-related AUM grew 18% to $271 billion. Gray emphasized that this growth occurred “without taking on any insurance liabilities,” and said Blackstone placed or originated $50 billion of credits for private IG-focused clients, generating about 180 basis points of incremental spread versus comparably rated liquid credits.
- Private wealth: Private wealth AUM grew 16% to more than $300 billion. In Q4, sales in the channel exceeded $11 billion, up 50% year-over-year. Gray cited BCRED gross sales of $3.3 billion in Q4 and record full-year gross sales over $14 billion, alongside reported long-term performance metrics for multiple products including BREIT, BXPE, and a newly launched infrastructure offering.
Financial details: management fees, realizations, and outlook
Vice Chairman and CFO Michael Chae said the fourth quarter was the best DE per share quarter in the firm’s history and among the three best quarters of fee-related earnings. He reported fee-related earnings (FRE) of $1.5 billion in Q4, or $1.25 per share, with management fees rising 11% year-over-year to a record $2.1 billion. Chae said base management fees grew 10%, while transaction and advisory fees increased 27%.
Chae said DE benefited from an acceleration in monetizations, with net realizations up 59% year-over-year to $957 million, the highest in three and a half years. He cited multiple drivers of gross performance revenues above $1 billion in the quarter, including partial sales of stakes such as in The Legence, a sale of a stake in the CityCenter complex in Las Vegas, and year-end crystallizations in BXMA and certain credit vehicles. He also noted the closing sale of Blackstone’s 6% stake in Resolution Life in connection with its sale to Nippon Life.
For the full year, Chae said FRE rose 9% to $5.7 billion, management fees increased 12% to $8.0 billion, and net realizations rose 50% to $2.1 billion. He said net accrued performance revenues on the balance sheet increased 7% to $6.7 billion.
Executives also addressed forward drivers for management fees and margins. In response to questions on fee growth, management said a new drawdown fundraising cycle is underway, with multiple funds expected to transition into fee-paying status by year-end after investment periods and fee holidays. On FRE margin, Chae said the firm views the “starting point” as margin stability with potential for upside, noting sensitivity to fee-related performance revenues and transaction fees, alongside a decelerating pace of expense growth.
On product expansion, management discussed potential long-term opportunity in retirement markets if U.S. regulatory changes enable broader use of private assets in 401(k) plans, describing 2026 as a year of “building” and suggesting capital raising could begin more meaningfully in 2027. Management also said it hopes to launch products with Vanguard and Wellington in the first half of the year, while declining to provide further detail.
About Blackstone (NYSE:BX)
Blackstone Inc (NYSE: BX) is a global investment firm focused on alternative asset management. Founded in 1985 by Stephen A. Schwarzman and Peter G. Peterson and headquartered in New York City, the firm organizes and manages investment vehicles that acquire and operate businesses, real estate and credit investments, as well as provide hedge fund solutions and other alternative strategies for institutional and individual investors.
Blackstone’s business is organized around several principal investment platforms.
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