How Emerging Managers Can Raise Their First Fund in 2025
Discover why cold outreach fails—and how emerging GPs harness Altss signal intelligence to fundraise smarter, faster, with credibility.
1. The Challenging Landscape for First-Time Funds in 2025
First-time fundraises in 2025 are navigating a distinctly constrained environment:
- Fund closings dropped from 121 in 2023 to just 46 in 2024, generating only $9.2 billion—less than half the prior year’s total (PitchBook, Wall Street Journal) .
- In Q1 2025, only $112 billion was raised globally across 204 funds—the lowest quarterly total in nearly five years (PitchBook, Private Equity International) .
- Institutional LPs continue to prioritize mega-cap funds, putting emerging managers under intense pressure (Juniper Square, Preqin) .
Still, 38% of LPs indicate plans to increase allocations to emerging managers in the next 3–5 years (McKinsey, Wall Street Journal) .
2. Why Traditional Fundraising Tactics Are Failing
Cold Outreach Tools
Platforms like ThinkFish and ZoomInfo promise efficiency but often end in spam folders, poor engagement, and damaged email reputation.
One LeadLoft review noted: “ThinkFish books meetings… but do they have software?” .
Placement Agents
Tier-1 agents frequently decline sub–$150 million funds—even for experienced teams or referrals—and typically require an anchor LP to initiate engagement (Financial News London, Wall Street Journal, With Intelligence) .
3. Introducing Altss: A Signal-Centric, Smart Fundraising Engine
Real-Time, Verified Signals
Altss provides OSINT-based updates on fund closes, mandate shifts, hiring trends, and co-invest activity—updated daily for accurate outreach.
Contextual Warm Outreach
Example message using Altss:
“Hi [LP Name], I noticed your firm closed a $150 million FoF in Q1. Our thesis aligns closely; I’ll be in NYC this week—do you have 20 minutes for coffee?”
This approach demonstrates intelligence, respect, and relevance.
Response Rates and Efficiency
Altss users report 20–30% reply rates, compared to 1–5% for cold outreach. This precision makes all the difference in 2025’s competitive landscape.
4. Manager Insights: Real Triumphs with Altss
- Manager A: “Spent $20K on ThinkFish—zero replies. Altss delivered three responses in four weeks; one LP requested a call.”
- Manager B, experienced investor: “No traction until Altss surfaced LPs entering our sector—then doors opened.”
- Manager C: “No anchor LP, but we secured three commitments in six weeks using Altss signals.”
These illustrate genuine impact and real-world momentum.
5. A Step-by-Step Framework for 2025 Fundraising
Define fund thesis and size ($50–150 million).
Determine LP criteria: sector, ticket, stage.
Use Altss to track live signaling LPs.
Send 5–10 personalized, signal-based messages per week.
Follow up thoughtfully around events or travel.
Measure replies and meetings—focus on real engagement, not clicks.
Iterate outreach based on what works.
This method ensures outreach is relevant, respectful, and effective.
6. The 2025 Timing Advantage
In Q1 2025, the median time to close dropped to 11.7 months—the fastest since 2022 (PitchBook, Juniper Square, Private Equity International) . With signal-led outreach, that timeline becomes achievable.
7. Reputation Is Your Currency
By focusing on targeted, context-based outreach, emerging managers avoid spamming, maintain domain integrity, and build long-term credibility with LPs.
8. Altss vs. Conventional Methods: A Clear Winner
- Cold tools: noisy, imprecise, risky
- Placement agents: costly, anchor-dependent, restrictive
- Altss: targeted, data-driven, accessible to <$150M funds
Altss is a proven advantage in 2025’s fundraising environment.
9. Looking Ahead: Comiq AI
Coming soon: Comiq AI, an invite-only enterprise-grade AI SDR built on Altss signals. Comiq will automate follow-ups and trigger outreach based on LP activity or your travel plans—stay tuned.
10. Final Takeaways for Emerging Managers
- Cold outreach fails amid mailbox saturation and domain fatigue.
- Placement agents often decline smaller funds without anchor LPs.
- Altss delivers signal-based intelligence for targeted LP engagement.
- Contextual outreach yields higher replies, faster traction, and reputational gains.
- The 2025 fundraising cycle aligns with this strategy.
- Comiq AI is next in intelligent outreach support.
Book a demo now
Turn real signals into meetings and commitments—and join the Comiq AI waitlist to elevate follow-up and reach at scale. Whether you’re launching Fund I or scaling to $3 billion, Altss delivers the LP insight and outreach precision you need.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is a "signal" in Altss?
A: A signal represents LP activity—such as fund closes, mandate expansions, hiring, or co-investing—that suggests investment intent. Signals enable relevance-driven outreach.
Q: How many messages should I send daily?
A: Aim for five to ten personalized, signal-based messages daily. This maintains a focused and high-quality pipeline without spamming.
Q: Can I close without an anchor LP?
A: Yes. With Altss, several emerging managers have closed commitment from three LPs in six weeks without needing initial anchor capital.
Q: How do I avoid spam filters?
A: Focus on intelligent, signal-based, and human-curated messages—this preserves domain reputation and avoids email blacklisting.
Q: Is Altss suitable for large platforms raising a $3B fund?
A: Yes. Large GPs use Altss to identify anchor LPs, timing signals, and alignment with large-scale mandates.
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