While the number of fund management entities in Cyprusedged down in early 2025, total assets under management rose sharply, highlightinga shift in capital concentration and investment preference across the country’sfinancial sector.The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC)reported that the collective investments sector reached €10.7 billion in totalassets under management (AUM) during the first quarter of 2025, up 6.64% fromthe previous quarter. This growth occurred despite a 1.8% annual drop in thenumber of supervised Management Companies and Undertakings of CollectiveInvestments (UCIs), now standing at 322.Private Equity InvestmentAllocationsCySEC's latest bulletin revealed changing allocationpatterns among Cyprus-based UCIs. Alternative Investment Fund Managers (AIFMs)continue to dominate the market, managing 63% of all assets. UCITS ManagementCompanies account for 10%, while Sub-threshold AIFMs manage 9%. Only 1% ofassets are overseen by foreign fund managers.Private equity emerged as the largest investmentcategory, representing 31% of total AUM among Alternative Investment Funds(AIFs), Limited Number Persons AIFs (AIFLNPs), and Reserved AIFs (RAIFs).Real estate made up 16.6%, while hedge funds and fundsof funds held shares of 12.5% and 12.3% respectively. A new breakdown offeredfor the first time shows that within private equity, 36.2% was allocated togrowth capital and 34.2% to multi-strategy investments.Local Investments and Investor TypesOut of the 224 UCIs with active operations, 198 aredomiciled in Cyprus, collectively holding 72.4% of total AUM. Notably, 162 ofthese entities direct some or all of their investments locally.You may also find interesting: Hong Kong's Assets Under Management Grow by Double Digits on 81% Rise in Fund Inflows – SFC SurveyThese domestic allocations total €2.9 billion, or justover 27% of Cyprus’ overall fund assets. Private equity leads the way in localdeployment, representing more than 70% of these Cyprus-based investments.Retail investors dominate the UCITS space, comprising99.1% of its 8,831 investors. In contrast, the investor base for AIFs, AIFLNPs,and RAIFs skews toward professionals and well-informed individuals. Only 12.1%of these investors are classified as retail, with 63.4% deemed well-informedand 24.5% professional.UCITS Focus on Transferable SecuritiesWithin the UCITS framework, a significantmajority—86.7%—of funds are invested in transferable securities. A further 9%of assets go into other UCITS and collective investment schemes, while 3.3% iskept in bank deposits. The more diverse “Other” category of investmentincludes 32.2% in equity capital and 16.8% in fixed income, alongside smallershares in cash, commodities, and infrastructure.This article was written by Jared Kirui at www.financemagnates.com.