Goldman Sachs Asset Management is set to launch a new private credit collective investment trust, aiming to provide defined contribution plans with access to a segment of the market traditionally reserved for institutional investors.
The Goldman Sachs Collective Trust – Private Credit Fund, or GS Private Credit CIT, will debut as part of Great Gray Trust Company’s Panorix Target Date Series, according to a company announcement Monday.
The new fund is structured to offer exposure to a broad mix of private credit investments, including North American and European direct lending and private placements. It also features a liquidity sleeve designed to support daily liquidity requirements, making it suitable for use in target date funds, multi-manager bond funds, and managed accounts within retirement portfolios.
“This solution is designed to meet the practical needs of retirement plans,” Greg Wilson, global head of retirement at Goldman Sachs Asset Management, said in the announcement Monday. “By combining our scale and long history as an innovator in private credit with our broad experience in the defined benefit and defined contribution space, we aim to deliver access to attractive investment opportunities in an accessible format for the defined contribution market. We are proud to be part of Great Gray’s vision for a fully integrated retirement solution.”
The GS Private Credit CIT is expected to launch in the fourth quarter, with Goldman Sachs charging a fee of about one percent of assets, inclusive of administrative expenses, according to a report from Barron’s. The move comes as money managers across the industry seek to introduce alternative investments to retirement portfolios – that includes Blue Owl's recently announced partnership with Voya and another collaboration between Apollo and State Street – a trend fueled by evolving regulations and the shrinking universe of public market opportunities.
Marc Nachmann, global head of asset and wealth management at Goldman Sachs, told Barron’s that retirement portfolios, with their decadeslong time horizons, are well-suited for illiquid assets that may be locked up for several years. “[The] right balance is important,” Nachmann said.
The Panorix Target Date Series, developed by Great Gray in collaboration with institutional managers, will blend a custom glidepath from BlackRock with liquidity and cashflow management from Wilshire Advisors, as well as private equity offerings from BlackRock and the new private credit fund from Goldman Sachs. The combination is intended to bring investment capabilities previously available mainly to institutions into the defined contribution space.
“The addition of private credit completes the vision behind Panorix, a purpose-built retirement solution that brings together institutional-quality public and private markets in one seamless structure,” said Rob Barnett, chief executive of Great Gray. “By collaborating with Goldman Sachs, BlackRock and Wilshire, we’re unlocking broader access to sophisticated strategies that were once out of reach for everyday savers -- all while staying anchored to fiduciary standards and participant-first design.”
Goldman Sachs’ private credit platform manages $142 billion in assets and is overseen by the firm’s multi-asset solutions team. The company’s broader alternatives business, which includes private equity, real estate, infrastructure, and hedge funds, manages more than $500 billion globally.
The push to bring private credit to retirement plans comes as policymakers and industry analysts debate the risks and rewards of expanding access to alternative investments.
Senator Elizabeth Warren, who has also questioned plans to put private equity in 401(k)s, recently called for greater scrutiny of the private credit market, sending letters to major ratings agencies and the Treasury Department to inquire about how they assess the risks of these products. As per the Wall Street Journal, Warren cited concerns about the opacity and interconnectedness of private credit with the broader financial system, as well as the potential for overly optimistic credit ratings reminiscent of those that contributed to the 2008 financial crisis .
Industry analysts have also pointed to challenges, including higher fees and the reluctance of some corporate plan sponsors to embrace private assets, citing litigation risks and the complexity of these investments , according to Barron’s.
Goldman Sachs, for its part, has argued that private credit offers higher historical returns than traditional public credit markets, with loss ratios that are similar or lower. In a recent note, the firm said private credit’s appeal lies in its ability to provide greater flexibility, customization, and certainty of execution, as well as the potential for portfolio diversification.
"We believe private credit will continue to evolve in a complementary fashion to public credit markets, with larger borrowers who have more standardized needs preferring public financing options, with smaller borrowers or those with more complex needs, who can benefit more from a bespoke approach, preferring private credit," it said in a note published this month.
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