PE’s semi-liquid push requires careful marketing
A ‘trading mentality’ approach to private equity is risky for non-institutional investors.
By Katrina Lau
What was once a trickle of private markets-focused semi-liquid products has become a deluge this year.
In the last week alone, Pantheon, JP Morgan Asset Management, Muzinich & Co, Allianz Global Investors and Schroders Capital have launched such products, adding to those established by the likes of EQT and HarbourVest this year. So crowded is this space becoming that Private Equity International last month published a handy list of evergreen products that details what differentiates them from each other.
This surge of entrants in part reflects the growing significance of the private wealth channel. More private wealth investors are noticing the appeal of having private equity exposure in their portfolios, and digital fundraising platforms are also breaking down barriers for individuals to access the asset class.
As more of these products come to market – and, by extension, a larger proportion of the wealth universe is offered access to the private markets – managers and distributors of such vehicles would do well to tread carefully in how they market them to potential investors...