Alternative investment marketplace iCapital experienced massive growth last year, with more than a 400 percent increase in assets serviced by the platform.
As of December 2019, the company services more than $46.6 billion in invested capital across approximately 470 funds, 100,000 underlying accounts, and 55 white label partners. It also closed its acquisition of Bank of America’s alternative investment feeder fund operations.
“2019 was a breakout year for iCapital, positioning us to fundamentally change the industry,” said Lawrence Calcano, Chief Executive Officer of iCapital Network. “iCapital has evolved from connecting two end points in the alternative investing lifecycle – the buyer and the seller – to establishing and automating the entire ecosystem. Our team is working diligently to enhance the value that we can deliver to our clients across the industry, and we are excited to further evolve and scale in the next decade.”
The company’s focus has been on enhancing its platform technology and functionality to boost service for both existing and future clients, as well as expanding its investment offerings and worldwide investor base. On that note, iCapital doesn’t appear to be slowing down in 2020. Earlier this year, it closed a $146 million capital raise led by Ping An Global Voyager Fund, with participation from new investors Goldman Sachs, Affiliated Managers Group, Hamilton Lane and WestCap. Existing investors BlackRock, UBS Financial Services, Inc., Blackstone, and BNY Mellon also participated in the round.
In May, iCapital announced that it had entered an agreement to acquire Artivest, a technology company that allows accessing and investing in alternatives. And last month, iCapital revealed that it will be buying the alternative investments feeder fund platform from Wells Fargo’s Global Alternative Investments (GAI) division, which supports a full suite of alternative solutions, including private equity, private debt, hedge funds, private real estate, and direct private investments across approximately 70 investment vehicles.
Upon completion of both transactions, which are expected to close during the second half of 2020, iCapital’s platform will service nearly $58 billion in client assets across more than 720 funds, 120,000 underlying accounts, and more than 70 white label partners.
