Well, the pandemic did not have any ill effects on the fundraising total registered during second quarter. Instead, 28 funds reported final closings during the quarter, raising a very healthy $40.2 billion, the fourth-highest quarterly total on record since FundTracker started tracking data in 2007. In addition, the second quarter activity was a welcome step up from the first quarter’s slow start that recorded 22 fund closings and an aggregate fund raise of only $18.8 billion.

As mentioned, the second quarter fundraising total ranks fourth on the all-time list, only trailing the $63.6 billion raised in Q1/2019, the $57.2 billion recorded in Q2/2008, and the Q2/2007 total of $48.1 billion. The quarter’s dollar volume was also substantially higher than the fundraising total in Q2/2019 ($20.6 billion) and Q2/2018 ($28.4 billion). The first-half 2020 total of $59.0 billion is dwarfed by the $84.2 billion raised during the first six months of 2019, but it is comparabl