Private market performance conversations are under more scrutiny than ever.
And here’s the paradox: there’s no shortage of data.
Performance databases are filled with information: Thousands of funds, endless metrics, downloadable reports. But much of it isn’t structured for true comparability. Benchmarks aren’t always segmented consistently. Vintage years, geographies, and strategies don’t line up cleanly. And static reports quickly become outdated.
LPs are left trying to defend allocation decisions using data that isn’t always apples-to-apples.
GPs are forced to position performance within peer sets that may not reflect their true competitive landscape.
The problem isn’t access to data. It’s the lack of consistent structure and context needed to make it meaningful.
Dakota Benchmarks was built with that reality in mind.
Integrated within Dakota Marketplace, Dakota Benchmarks delivers a comprehensive, continuously updated view of private fund performance — giving LPs and GPs the clarity and confidence to evaluate, position, and communicate results with precision.
In this article, we’ll explore how LPs and GPs are incorporating Dakota Benchmarks into real-world allocation and fundraising workflows.
Want to see Dakota Benchmarks in action? Book a demo of Dakota Marketplace.
The Shift in Private Market Benchmarking
Private markets have become more segmented, competitive, and data-driven, even as expectations for transparency and accountability have increased.
Yet many benchmarking solutions still rely on static reports that quickly become outdated and lack meaningful segmentation.
Dakota Benchmarks was built differently. Powered by verified LP and GP reporting and directly into Dakota Marketplace, it provides institutional-grade performance data segmented by vintage year, geography, and strategy. All within a living, continuously refreshed database.
Instead of relying on snapshots, LPs and GPs can operate from a single, trusted source of truth.
See how Dakota Benchmarks delivers continuously updated performance insight, book a demo of Dakota Marketplace.
How LPs Are Using Dakota Benchmarks
Evaluating Managers Against the Right Peer Set
LPs face increasing pressure to defend their allocation decisions. Generic peer comparisons simply aren’t enough.
With Dakota Benchmarks, LPs can compare managers within clearly defined competitive sets. Performance can be evaluated by asset class, strategy, vintage, and geography. Ensuring comparisons are meaningful and defensible in investment committee discussions.
This level of segmentation reduces ambiguity and bolsters internal conversations.
Supporting Portfolio Construction and Pacing
Benchmarking is only meaningful within the context of overall portfolio construction.
Because Dakota Benchmarks is embedded within Dakota Marketplace, LPs can analyze performance alongside fund research, deal activity, and broader market intelligence. Benchmarking becomes part of the portfolio construction process, not a separate exercise requiring disconnected tools.
This integration allows allocators to align performance insight with real-time market data.
Understanding What’s Driving Returns
In private markets, performance numbers alone rarely tell the full story.
Dakota Benchmarks connects fund performance to portfolio company outcomes, sector dynamics, and sponsor cycles. Rather than viewing IRRs and multiples in isolation, LPs gain visibility into the drivers of outperformance and the impact of broader market conditions.
That context is critical in an asset class historically defined by opacity.
Discover how LPs are using Dakota Benchmarks in allocation decisions, book a demo of Dakota Marketplace.
How GPs Are Using Dakota Benchmarks
Positioning Performance with Credibility
Fundraising conversations have become more rigorous. LPs expect precision and comparability.
GPs use Dakota Benchmarks to frame their track record within clearly segmented peer groups. By benchmarking performance by vintage, geography, and strategy, managers can position results within the appropriate competitive landscape.
This ensures performance discussions are grounded in verified data, not generalized industry assumptions.
Strengthening Fundraising Conversations
A common question during fundraising is simple: “How do you compare to peers?”
Dakota Benchmarks provides quartiles backed by verified LP and GP reporting, giving managers a reliable reference point when communicating performance.
Because the data is integrated within Dakota Marketplace, managers can pair benchmarks with broader market intelligence – creating a more complete and transparent narrative.
Connecting Performance to Value Creation
Sophisticated LPs want to understand how returns were generated, not just what the returns were.
Dakota Benchmarks links fund performance to transactions and portfolio companies, helping GPs demonstrate how value was created across cycles. This elevates conversations beyond headline metrics and into strategy execution and market positioning.
See how GPs are using Dakota Benchmarks to support fundraising and reporting, book a demo of Dakota Marketplace.
The Dakota Marketplace Advantage – Why It Matters Now
Private markets are complex, and they’re only getting more competitive. Performance scrutiny has intensified, data has multiplied, and expectations around transparency have risen across the board.
Teams need visibility across multiple dimensions at once.
With Dakota Benchmarks, users gain insight into the broader private market ecosystem in one platform. They can identify top-performing GPs by vintage and strategy, understand the transactions driving returns, and connect fund performance to the real economy.
Benchmarks sit alongside deal flow, investor data, and company intelligence to create an integrated intelligence layer rather than a static report.
As private markets evolve, credible benchmarking is no longer optional. LPs need clarity when allocating capital. GPs need confidence when positioning performance.
Dakota Benchmarks provides both through a continuously updated, database-driven platform built for the complexity of today’s private markets.
This unified view allows LPs and GPs to operate with greater clarity, speed, and confidence.
To equip your team with transparent, segmented, and continuously refreshed private fund performance insight book a demo of Dakota Marketplace!
