iCapital takes on private-market liquidity challenge with strategic investment in Tangible Markets

iCapital has unveiled a new strategic partnership to help advisors and qualified investors on its platform address the issue of too-long lockup periods in private market investments.

The fintech firm, whose $994 billion in global platform assets includes $266.5 billion in alternative investments, said it has taken a strategic stake in Tangible Markets and will plug the firm’s liquidity technology into its platform, aiming to give advisors and qualified investors more regular ways to rebalance private fund exposures.

The companies expect Tangible’s tools to be available by the end of 2025, according to an announcement published on Monday.

Tangible focuses on secondary-market access for positions held through wealth channels. The company says it works with more than 100 secondary investors and supports a range of workflows – recurring auctions, a qualified matching service and NAV lending – with transaction sizes from $75,000 to more than $250 million.

“Lack of liquidity has long been a friction point for broader allocations to alternative investments,” said iCapital chair and CEO Lawrence Calcano, adding that a more robust secondary market can give clients “greater transparency” and flexibility to rebalance without waiting for a natural exit.

The firm's 2025 Global Advisor Survey found that while nearly all respondents planned to maintain or increase their alts exposure, 55% said they faced difficulties in assessing liquidity and risk across alternative asset classes.

Tangible co-founder Khalil Hibri said the firm has focused on “solving access to liquidity in private markets,” enabling wealth managers, GPs and institutional buyers to transact across a range of deal sizes.

For iCapital, the Tangible tie-up extends a 2025 deal streak centered on private markets distribution and infrastructure. In January, it announced a deal to acquire Parallel Markets to introduce a reusable KYC/AML “investor passport,” addressing choke pints in onboarding and compliance.

In February, iCapital announced a partnership with Apollo to help advisors integrate private market investments into client portfolios. That collaboration was expanded last month with a suite of Apollo evergreen products domiciled in Luxembourg getting listed on iCapital Marketplace for eligible investors.

Earlier this year, iCapital also agreed to take over management Citi Wealth’s alternatives feeder platform, Citi Global Alternatives. and provide an end-to-end tech solution for all alternative structures.

More recently in July, it secured a fresh round of financing from a coalition of investors including T. Rowe Price, State Street, UBS, and BNY. That investment, which exceeded $820 million, wouldbe aimed at supporting iCapital's acquisition strategy, as well as expanding its international reach and beefing up its technology infrastructure.

The timing also speaks to a market-wide search for liquidity release valves. Secondary transaction volume hit a record $162 billion in 2024, with multiple banks and advisers expecting activity to climb again this year as LPs seek liquidity and GP-led continuation vehicles proliferate.

According to the Wall Street Journal, higher interest rates and tariff uncertainty have many PE firms grow reluctant to adopt the usual exit strategies of taking companies public or selling them this year. That's driven cash-hungry investors – including pension funds and endowments – to the secondary market, with many selling their private-market stakes at a discount.

"Private-equity firms themselves are also increasingly turning to continuation funds to give investors a way to cash out in a tough market," the Journal said.