Many successful privately held companies are able to raise funds from institutional investors at attractive valuations and defer their IPOs.  Almost $49 billion was raised in late stage Private Placements (also referred to as “mezzanine” private placements or “pre-IPO” private placements) in 2017, an 18% year-over-year increase.  As in prior years, tech companies benefited most from this trend and accounted for 42% of dollars raised in these transactions.  It is difficult to predict whether this year will mark a turning point in which we see some unicorns undertake IPOs.  Our infographic provides a snapshot of the market for these transactions in the United States.