Global infrastructure fundraising plummeted to a record low of $43.3 billion in the first six months of 2026, a sharp retreat from the record $250 billion raised in 2025, according to the Infrastructure Trends Report 2026 released by With Intelligence, part of S&P Global, on September 24. The dramatic swing reflects what the report characterizes as wild fluctuations in political sentiment around major data center projects and widespread liquidity pressures that are fundamentally reshaping the infrastructure investment landscape. While artificial intelligence and demand for computing power remain key drivers of digital infrastructure spending, the report finds that many institutional investors are now widening their scope to encompass traditional energy and utilities alongside energy-transition assets and renewables.
A total of 31 closed-end funds reached final close worldwide during the first half of 2026, with the bulk of capital—$30.6 billion, or 71 percent—secured in the first quarter alone. Activity then collapsed to $12.7 billion across just 10 funds in the second quarter, according to the report's findings. Despite the fundraising slowdown, several major allocators tracked by With Intelligence introduced or increased their infrastructure targets in 2026. PSP Investments and Ohio SERS together accounted for $3 billion of the $3.6 billion implied increase in infrastructure target capacity among the 10 allocators the report monitored. Meanwhile, energy and utilities strategies pulled in $7.5 billion in the first half of 2026, outpacing the $6.4 billion secured by energy-transition and renewables strategies.
"Infrastructure finance is not for the faint of heart," said Viola Caon, global infrastructure research lead at With Intelligence, S&P Global. "In the last year alone, we've seen wild swings from record-high to record-low fundraising." The report notes that within these massive headline shifts, more subtle trends have emerged, including growing investor intent to enter the sector in the second half of the year and continued convergence across sectors like energy and digital infrastructure. Caon attributed the volatility to wild swings in political and popular sentiment over the future of major data center projects alongside widespread liquidity constraints.
The report explains that the growth of artificial intelligence is creating unprecedented electricity demand, with European data center consumption projected to climb by more than 50 percent between 2025 and 2030. As this demand intensifies, investors and managers are reassessing traditional energy and utilities in parallel with energy-transition assets, positioning power generation as the next major play for those eyeing the AI data center boom. The shift in focus reflects a broadening recognition that the infrastructure needed to support AI extends well beyond data centers themselves to the fundamental energy systems required to power them. Despite the first-half slowdown and liquidity pressures, the report signals that institutional appetite for infrastructure remains strong, with rising allocation targets suggesting investors view the current lull as temporary rather than structural and are positioning themselves to deploy capital as market conditions stabilize in the months ahead.