BlackRock enhances alts data with $3.2B Preqin acquisition

BlackRock Inc. will acquire private capital database provider Preqin for £2.55 billion ($3.2 billion) in cash, as the world’s largest money manager accelerates its push to become a major player in alternative assets.

The acquisition deepens BlackRock’s ability to oversee risks and analyze data across fast-growing markets for private assets, and also expands its Aladdin technology systems, the New York-based firm said in a statement on Sunday. 

“We see data powering the industry across technology, capital formation, investing and risk management,” Rob Goldstein, BlackRock chief operating officer, said in the statement.

Private markets are the fastest growing part of asset management, with alternative assets expected to reach nearly $40 trillion by the end of the decade, according to BlackRock’s statement. That’s prompting surging demand from investors for relevant data with the total addressable market expected to reach $18 billion by 2030, up from around $8 billion today.

For BlackRock Chief Executive Officer Larry Fink, the deal would be a second major acquisition this year to expand into the fast-growing world of private markets investing. The firm announced a deal in January to acquire Global Infrastructure Partners for about $12.5 billion, a landmark move to expand its offerings beyond primarily stocks and bonds. 

BlackRock, with $10.5 trillion in client assets at the end of March, also acquired Kreos Capital last year to expand in private debt. In recent years, the firm has been building out its technology and risk-management businesses. In 2019, BlackRock acquired eFront, a software provider enabling investors to assess private market assets.

Preqin covers 190,000 funds, 60,000 fund managers and 30,000 private markets investors, according to the statement. It’s used by money managers, insurers, pensions and wealth managers, among others, and has grown approximately 20% per year in the past three years.

The transaction is expected to close before the end of the year, subject to regulatory and other necessary approvals. 

Preqin competes with Bloomberg LP, the parent of Bloomberg News.