Data sourced from Dakota Marketplace, the global LP and GP intelligence platform trusted by thousands of investment professionals. Learn More | Book a Demo
Fundraising and raising capital is hard. Dakota Marketplace makes it easier.
You find out an allocator is hiring the same way everyone else does: after the fact.
By the time an RFP hits your inbox through a random alert service or a scattered consultant website, half the field has already seen it. The deadline's closer than it looked. And you still don't know why they're hiring, or who's actually making the call.
In this article, we'll walk through how Dakota Marketplace's Searches feature surfaces institutional RFPs the moment they're announced, connects each one to the committee decision behind it, and turns a cold submission into a pitch that actually speaks to what the allocator cares about.
What the Searches Tab Actually Shows You
The Searches tab surfaces institutional investment searches and RFPs as they're announced across public pensions, corporate pensions, endowments, foundations, insurance companies, and other allocators actively soliciting managers. Each alert typically includes the allocator, the asset class or strategy sought, the mandate size where disclosed, the consultant if one's involved, and the submission deadline, delivered by email so you're not the one monitoring RFP boards.
The real value shows up when you pair it with two other parts of Marketplace: Public Plan Minutes, which shows you the committee discussion behind a hire or RFP decision, and allocator profile pages, which show recent capital deployment history for that account. That's the difference between "here's an open search" and "here's an open search, here's why they're hiring, and here's what they've funded before."
Dakota Marketplace currently tracks 1,678 total searches, spanning 1,490 archived, 153 pacing, 24 open, 7 ongoing, and 4 upcoming. We've also identified the search winner at the firm level for 545 searches across 256 different firms, and at the fund level for 210 searches across 181 different funds.
Where the Attention Is Going
Over the last 90 days, Searches drew 12,351 views across 568 records. Private real estate led with 3,013 views, followed by private credit at 2,611 and private equity at 1,436. If you're fundraising in those three categories, you're competing for attention in the most-watched corners of the platform.
What This Looks Like for a Fundraiser Using It
Ares Management got introduced to Searches during a platform walkthrough and quickly saw the difference between open RFPs and pacing plans. After filtering to pacing plans across real assets and infrastructure, the reaction was immediate: they'd been missing that information. They set up search notifications on the spot to start getting same-day updates.
TIFF has made Searches a bigger part of their workflow after a recent QBR, citing the depth of the data as reason enough to lean in further.
Lord Abbett explored Searches filtered to private credit and fixed income during a new member walkthrough and surfaced a $400M private debt pacing plan straight from board minutes, alongside open RFPs available for submission. Their takeaway: Searches keeps them ahead of formal consultant emails.
See a walkthrough of the Searches feature to see how pacing plans and open RFPs surface for your coverage.
Stop Playing Detective With Who's Hiring
Right now, most fundraisers are checking scattered websites and hoping an alert service catches an RFP before the deadline passes. Searches shows you institutional RFPs the moment they go public, connects each one to the committee minutes and investment history behind it, and lets you write a pitch aimed at what the allocator actually cares about instead of a generic copy-paste response.
FAQs
What does the Searches feature show?
Institutional investment searches and RFPs as they're announced, including the allocator, asset class or strategy, mandate size where disclosed, consultant if applicable, and submission deadline.
How do I get alerted to new searches?
Search alerts are delivered by email, and notification settings can be scoped to your specific coverage through the Preference Center.
Can I see who won a search?
Yes. Dakota Marketplace has identified the search winner at the firm level for 545 searches and at the fund level for 210 searches.
Book a demo to see how Searches surfaces open RFPs and pacing plans for your specific asset class.
