Blackstone Raises $8 Billion for Long-Term Private Equity Fund

Blackstone Group Inc.’s private equity business raised $8 billion for a fund that aims to hold companies for longer periods than its typical investments.

The firm’s second core private equity fund will be more than 70% larger than its first, which closed in 2016. Investments will focus on essential business services and companies with compelling intellectual property or content, Joe Baratta, Blackstone’s global head of private equity, said in an interview. The group’s previous long-term fund made investments that included music-rights company SESAC Holdings and Servpro Industries, a provider of cleaning and emergency restoration services.

“These are ...