Of course, the shift of most investors from active to passive investing is not the only large-scale change in the public marketsthe number of public companies is also shrinking. In 1998, there were over 7,500 publicly listed companies in the United States. By 2017, there were less than 4,000. Many companies are choosing to transition from public ownership to private ownership or to stay private. What do you think that does in terms of the opportunities for returns in public versus private markets? Easier to get returns in public markets; more difficult in private markets Easier to get returns in private markets; more difficult in public markets