J.P. Morgan Private Capital Bolsters Tech‑Focused Team with Two New Partners as Private‑Market Activity Accelerates
A strategic hiring spree reflects a shifting capital landscape
On March 31, 2026, J.P. Morgan Private Capital – the venture and growth‑equity arm of J.P. Morgan Asset Management – announced the addition of two seasoned technology investors to its partnership roster. Rand Araskog, arriving from Permira, and Eric Ghernati, transitioning from J.P. Morgan’s U.S. Equity Group, will focus on sourcing and scaling high‑growth companies that are increasingly choosing to stay private for extended periods.
The appointments come at a moment when the traditional boundary between public and private equity is blurring. Data from the National Bureau of Economic Research shows that the median age at initial public offering (IPO) for U.S. technology firms has risen from five years in 1999 to fourteen years in 2024 ¹. Simultaneously, the global pool of private‑market assets has ballooned twenty‑fold to roughly $20 trillion ². More than 800 private tech companies now exceed a $1 billion valuation, together representing close to $4 trillion of aggregate worth ³. J.P. Morgan Private Capital’s latest hires signal its intent to capture value across this expanding continuum.
Who are the new partners?
Rand Araskog – a cross‑border growth‑equity specialist
Araskog brings a hybrid background that spans public equities, growth‑stage venture, and buyout private equity. Until recently, he served as Managing Director at Permira, where he helped launch a dedicated $4 billion growth‑fund platform, establishing the investment thesis, operational systems, and deal‑sourcing team. Prior to Permira, Araskog was a Long/Short and Growth Equity Analyst at Coatue, focusing on enterprise software, hardware, and frontier technologies. His early career began in investment banking at Goldman Sachs. He holds a B.A. from Duke University and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.
Eric Ghernati – a public‑market technologist turned private‑equity strategist
Ghernati has been with J.P. Morgan Asset Management since 2020, most recently steering technology strategies across all market caps in the U.S. Equity Group. His responsibilities included managing the Mid‑Cap Growth and Small‑Cap Growth portfolios, co‑managing the U.S. Tech Leaders Strategy (including its active ETF, JTEK), and overseeing the US Equity Focus fund. Ghernati also led the group’s selective pre‑IPO and private‑equity investments. Before joining J.P. Morgan, he spent six years at Lord Abbett covering the technology sector for growth, value, and core strategies, and earlier in his career he spent 15 years as a research analyst at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. He earned a B.S. in Finance from San Francisco State University.
Leadership comments underscore a market‑driven agenda
“We’re thrilled to have Rand and Eric join the Private Capital team. Their deep investment expertise across public and private markets will help us continue to support high‑growth companies at scale,” said Paris Heymann, Managing Partner, Technology Investing at J.P. Morgan Private Capital.
Patrick McGoldrick, Managing Partner of the unit, added: “We see substantial opportunity to continue scaling the Private Capital platform. Rand and Eric will enable us to develop unique strategies across the growth investing continuum as we strive to partner with the world’s most innovative companies.”
Jed Laskowitz, Global Head of Private Markets and Customized Solutions, highlighted the client‑demand side: “With companies staying private longer, we are seeing an explosion of client interest in the convergence of public and private equity. Rand and Eric’s extensive experience across growth markets will be instrumental in delivering differentiated solutions to our clients.”
Why the timing matters
The private‑market surge is not merely a statistical curiosity; it reshapes capital‑allocation decisions for institutional investors, family offices, and sovereign wealth funds. The lengthening IPO window reduces the frequency of liquidity events, prompting investors to seek longer‑term exposure through private‑equity vehicles, secondary markets, and structured solutions that blend public‑market liquidity with private‑market upside.
J.P. Morgan’s decision to deepen its technology‑focused partnership team aligns with three converging trends:
- Extended private lifecycles – Companies are using private capital to scale product development, regulatory compliance, and global expansion before an IPO, which now typically occurs at a later stage of maturity.
- Increased capital depth – With $20 trillion now allocated to private assets, investors can support larger rounds, later‑stage growth, and even pre‑IPO secondary transactions.
- Client demand for hybrid solutions – Institutional clients increasingly request bespoke structures that provide private‑market exposure while preserving some liquidity, a niche that J.P. Morgan’s Private Capital platform is positioned to fill.
The broader competitive landscape
J.P. Morgan Private Capital is not the only incumbent expanding its tech‑focused private‑equity capabilities. Rivals such as Goldman Sachs’ Merchant Banking Division, Morgan Stanley’s Private Equity arm, and emerging specialist funds like Andreessen Horowitz’s growth fund have all announced similar hires or fund expansions in 2025‑2026. However, J.P. Morgan’s scale—backed by a $20 trillion asset base and a global client network—offers a distinct advantage in terms of deal flow, co‑investment opportunities, and the ability to provide customized financing structures.
Potential impact on portfolio companies
For high‑growth technology firms, the addition of Araskog and Ghernati could translate into more sophisticated capital‑raising options. Their combined experience spans early‑stage venture, growth‑equity, and public‑market navigation, enabling portfolio companies to benefit from a holistic view of financing pathways—from seed rounds to pre‑IPO liquidity events. Moreover, the partners’ backgrounds in public‑equity research suggest an ability to position private companies for smoother transitions to the public markets when the timing aligns with strategic objectives.
Risk considerations
While the private‑market expansion offers attractive upside, it also introduces heightened valuation risk. Companies that remain private longer may experience multiple funding rounds at escalating valuations, potentially compressing future returns if an IPO or strategic exit does not materialize at anticipated multiples. J.P. Morgan’s rigorous due‑diligence framework and the partners’ public‑equity experience should help mitigate these risks, but investors must remain vigilant about market cycles and sector‑specific downturns, especially in areas like artificial intelligence and fintech where regulatory scrutiny can shift rapidly.
J.P. Morgan’s rigorous due‑diligence framework and the partners’ public‑equity experience should help mitigate these risks, but investors must remain vigilant about market cycles and sector‑specific downturns, especially in areas like data intelligence and fintech where regulatory scrutiny can shift rapidly.
Looking ahead
The hires underscore J.P. Morgan’s confidence that the private‑tech market will continue to generate sizable deal flow and attractive risk‑adjusted returns. As the firm integrates Araskog and Ghernati into its investment committees, the expectation is for a more aggressive pursuit of late‑stage growth opportunities, secondary market transactions, and structured co‑investment vehicles that cater to institutional appetite for private‑equity exposure.
Industry observers will watch how the new partners influence J.P. Morgan’s allocation decisions, particularly in emerging subsectors such as cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, and AI‑driven platforms—areas that have seen robust private funding over the past two years. If successful, the move could set a benchmark for other large asset managers seeking to balance their public‑equity strengths with a deeper foothold in the private‑market ecosystem.
Footnotes
- ¹ Source: Jay R. Ritter, as of January 2025
- ² Source: Preqin, 2025
- ³ J.P. Morgan Asset Management, Guide to Alternatives, 4Q 2025
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