Private equity outperforms public counterpart by 70 basis points annually when comparing median returns

The average annual return for the Cambridge Associates U.S. Private Equity index is 14.62%, with a median return of 14.53% since 1987 - its first full year of returns. That average is 352 basis points higher than the Russell 3000 over the 26-year period, skewed largely by the public equity index's 37% drop in 2008. The median return for the Russell 3000 was 13.83% during that period, 70 basis points lower than the private equity index.