Fidelity rolls out private markets model portfolios with alts education for advisors

Fidelity is rolling out new model portfolios and an education program aimed at helping RIAs and other wealth managers add alternative investments to client accounts, as the case for exposure to private markets clashes with increasing unease around the direct lending space.

The investing giant on Tuesday said it has introduced two suites of turnkey model portfolios that incorporate private equity, private credit, and private real estate.

The new lineups — Fidelity Model Portfolios with Private Markets and Fidelity Model Portfolios with Private Markets - ETF Focused — are multi-asset, open-architecture strategies that sit alongside Fidelity’s custom models with alternatives, which were launched through a strategic partnership with Envestnet last year.

The models blend active and passive strategies, with a fund universe that includes funds offered by Fidelity and third-party managers as well as ETFs, interval funds, tender offer funds, and a core sweep fund.

With investment minimums of $100,000, the models are initially available to eligible RIAs and broker-dealers through Envestnet, with broader distribution to other platforms expected over time. Fidelity is positioning the portfolios as an off-the-shelf way for advisory firms to add private market exposure without having to build and maintain their own manager lists and allocations.

“Wealth managers recognize the potential for private markets to differentiate their practice and diversify portfolios, but often struggle with the time needed for research and due diligence,” said Amanda Robinson, head of wealth advisory managed solutions specialist distribution at Fidelity Investments, noting that the additional turnkey models are meant to give advisors “the tools they need to offer private markets exposure at scale.”

Read more: Advisors push alternatives into the investing mainstream as client demand broaden

Fidelity Institutional Wealth Adviser, which oversees portfolio construction for both the turnkey and custom institutional models, is leaning on a dedicated alternative investment research team that uses quantitative and qualitative analysis along with a formal due diligence process to select managers. The firm said its systematic portfolio framework also incorporates proprietary research and insights from across the Fidelity organization.

Alongside the new portfolios, Fidelity is offering a continuing education program called Alternative Navigator. The CE-accredited, module-based curriculum blends Fidelity-led sessions, self-study tutorials, guides for advisors and end investors, and curated resources on how alts can fit into client portfolios.

“As interest in alternative investments grows, so does the need for education,” said Michael Scarsciotti, head of investment specialists at Fidelity Investments.

The first two modules, covering an introduction to alternatives and their role in client portfolios, are live now, with a third installment on specific alternative strategies slated for an early 2026 release. 

Fidelity’s push comes as advisors report more client interest in nontraditional assets and more appetite for packaged solutions. An advisor community survey by the firm found 46% were interested in model portfolios that blend traditional and alternative investments. The firm already oversees more than $50 billion in alternative strategies and provides access to thousands of proprietary and third-party alt products on its platform.

The demand for alts has been tested more recently in the private credit space. Revelations of fraud and high-profile bankruptcies late last year have led to a reckoning in the BDC space, with sales of non-traded BDCs drying up at the start of 2026.

Blue Owl, which has been at the forefront of alternative managers plowing into the retail market, recently took the drastic step of selling assets to satisfy redemption requests and reduce leverage within three of its credit vehicles. Alongside that, a move to permanently halt redemptions in Blue Owl Capital Corp II has sparked additional consternation for the retail crowd, who now appear to be seriously reconsidering their appetite for private credit funds.