Blackstone set to make debut on CAIS alts platform

CAIS, an alternative investment platform catering to independent financial advisors, has announced an expansion of its offerings through a partnership with Blackstone.

The alts platform provider announced Thursday that it’s adding Blackstone’s alternative investment strategies to the CAIS Marketplace. Blackstone currently claims a leadership position as the world's largest alternative asset manager with over $1 trillion in assets under management.

“As advisor demand for alternative investments accelerates, we are excited to welcome Blackstone, a firm that shares our vision in delivering quality education and strategies to financial advisors everywhere,” Matt Brown, founder and CEO of CAIS, said in a statement.

Under the new collaboration, CAIS Marketplace will host a selection of Blackstone strategies, all of which have undergone third-party due diligence by Mercer, to its network of registered investment advisors, independent broker-dealers, and RIA aggregators managing over $4 trillion in assets.

The strategies Blackstone is adding to the CAIS platform are wealth-centric products across private equity, private credit and real estate, a CAIS spokesperson told InvestmentNews.

For its part, Blackstone will be receiving access to a custom analytics dashboard provided to all asset managers on the platform, which is aimed at optimizing its engagement, pipeline management, and sales strategies. It will also receive educational support through CAIS IQ, digital marketing assistance, and integrations with custodians, reporting providers, and fund administrators.

 “We are pleased to collaborate with CAIS to introduce a number of Blackstone’s strategies to their broad network of independent advisors,” said Todd Myers, senior managing director and chief operating officer of Private Wealth Solutions at Blackstone.

“The growing number of advisors using private markets as a core portfolio allocation need just the type of deep commitment Blackstone and CAIS are making,” he said.

The partnership comes in the wake of a study pointing to an increased interest in private-credit allocations across the RIA space.

News of Blackstone's partnership with CAIS is also breaking just as its flagship REIT strategy, which has had to gate redemptions to investors numerous times in recent years, is coming under fresh scrutiny in the media.