Capital Allocators – Inside the Institutional Investment Industry Top 5 of 2025: #2: Ian Charles
41 snips
Dec 29, 2025 
In this discussion, Ian Charles, a founding partner at Arctos Partners, shares his journey in private equity and sports ownership. He explores the complexities of private equity firms and how Arctos employs a data-driven approach to tackle industry challenges. Ian highlights current market dynamics, like fundraising pressures and the need for LPs to adapt. He also introduces a ten-level framework to categorize firms and discusses the importance of talent and scale in navigating the evolving landscape.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Complexity Grows Nonlinearly With Scale
- Private equity GP businesses are highly complex and grow nonlinear complexity as they scale.
- Arctos uses data and tools to map firm capabilities and competitive landscapes to guide strategy.
Use A Level Framework To Predict Impact
- Classify firms by a 10-level pyramid based on size, product breadth, and capabilities to anticipate market impacts.
- Use level-based grouping because firms at the same level face similar market pressures more than those sharing strategy.
Power Law Concentrates Private Capital
- Capital concentration is extreme: ~15 firms control ~20% AUM and ~700 firms control ~90% of capital.
- The asset class displays a powerful power law that many investors underestimate.