Compensation in private equity (and credit) is starting to become a bit sad now
The private credit and private equity industries have not had a great few years, what with struggling exit opportunities and exploding funds. The biggest draw for professionals in the industry has always been the huge pay – but that seems to be fading away, too.
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Our Compensation & Lifestyle Report 2026 surveyed almost 3,000 professionals worldwide in financial services, including those who worked in private equity and credit, a collective that we labelled as private capital.
They were not an optimistic spot in our survey. With the exception of director-tier professionals (usually called principals in the private equity/credit hierarchy), compensation was broadly down in 2025.
Still, there were some indications of optimism. VP- and director-tier salaries were slightly up (2.5% each), while bonuses for both directors and associates was up around 21.6% and 17.3%, respectively. Pay at the very top of the pyramid for managing director (MD)-equivalent roles was also not bad. Compensation from salaries and bonuses, was $1.2m. This was from a mix of salaries, which fell by 11.8% on 2024, and bonuses, which rose by 7.1%.
It’s worth noting a few things in this analysis. For one, private capital firms have different structures to banks – there are usually very few analysts, for example. Secondly, our survey did not explore carried interest compensation, which can reach eight figures for senior professionals in a good year. Unfortunately, good years are becoming few and far between, making regular compensation more important than usual.
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