BlackRock Inc.’s Edwin Conway says big money clients are snapping up private investments for their portfolios.
Institutional clients are allocating anywhere from 20% to 50% of their portfolios to private markets, the global head of equity private markets told Bloomberg Television Thursday. Interest on the wealth side is “still in its infancy” but there has been a “tremendous amount of demand and growth,” with those clients allocating 2% to 5%.
“But the reality is they’re thinking about it in concert with their public market exposure. It’s not one versus the other, it’s one and the other,” he said. “So as we take a much more holistic approach to the portfolio of the future, it has to involve private markets as a critical ingredient for success.”
BlackRock revamped its credit and private asset business leadership in May to build more focused teams for those strategies. As part of the May overhaul, Conway was tapped to lead a group devoted to venture, private equity, infrastructure and growth equity investing, as well as investment strategies related to the world’s transition to clean energy. Previously, he was in charge of the firm’s overall alternatives unit.
Conway also said that 37% less capital has been deployed in private markets the first half of this year compared to the peak of the market in 2021, and there’s still about $2.49 trillion in private equity “sitting in dry powder.”
“So what you will see is a dearth of capital come to play,” he said. “Activity will pick up — hopefully in public and private — but valuations have started to normalize, things have gotten cheaper.”
From outstanding individuals to innovative organizations, find out who made the final shortlist for top honors at the IN awards, now in its second year.
Cresset's Susie Cranston is expecting an economic recession, but says her $65 billion RIA sees "great opportunity" to keep investing in a down market.
“There’s a big pull to alternative investments right now because of volatility of the stock market,” Kevin Gannon, CEO of Robert A. Stanger & Co., said.
Sellers shift focus: It's not about succession anymore.
Platform being adopted by independent-minded advisors who see insurance as a core pillar of their business.
RIAs face rising regulatory pressure in 2025. Forward-looking firms are responding with embedded technology, not more paperwork.
As inheritances are set to reshape client portfolios and next-gen heirs demand digital-first experiences, firms are retooling their wealth tech stacks and succession models in real time.