Alt Goes Mainstream: The Latest on Alternative Investments, WealthTech, & Private Markets

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s podcast dives into the world of real estate with one of the industry’s largest managers and investors in industrial real estate. We sat down in Franklin Templeton’s New York City office with real estate veteran Josh Pristaw, Managing Director, President of Clarion Partners, a $73.3B AUM real estate investment firm within Franklin Templeton’s alternatives platform. Josh discussed data and durable demographics, which are drivers of the deeply researched investment process that his team at Clarion employs to invest in industrial real estate. Josh’s background, which spans developing shopping centers to investing in real estate in Brazil to running one of the industry’s leading single-family rental investing platforms at Pretium, has helped him lead Clarion, one of the industry’s largest industrial real estate investment platforms. Josh and I had a fascinating conversation, connecting data and demographics to actionable insights in real estate investing.…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s podcast takes us to Oslo, Norway, for a very special conversation with Christian Sinding, the former CEO of one of the industry’s leading alternative asset managers, EQT. Christian’s hometown of Oslo provided an ideal setting to showcase both the Nordic heritage that represents EQT’s DNA and the global ambitions of the firm (and one of its portfolio companies, 1X) that is looking to fund Europe’s first €1T company. Christian has been one of the leaders in the alternative asset management industry. He was most recently the CEO of EQT, where he steered the firm on an impressive growth path as a public company and helped scale the firm to almost €300B AUM. He’s now focused on another ambitious project: the Scaleup Europe Fund, a fund that EQT is managing and has support from the European Commission to invest in Europe’s most promising technology companies. With 1X Tech’s NEO humanoid robot joining us for part of the discussion, Christian and I had a…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s podcast unpacks the importance of ownership and equity, and how the world’s largest private equity firm (source: PEI 300) has helped create a culture of ownership within its portfolio companies and more broadly across the industry. With the backdrop of KKR’s studio in New York and the firm fresh off the heels of celebrating its 50th Anniversary, we sat down with KKR’s Co-Head of Global Private Equity Pete Stavros for a live conversation during AGM’s RIA Field Trip to discuss how culture can be a competitive advantage and how it defines much of what KKR does both internally and with its portfolio companies. Pete has not only been a leading private equity investor at one of the industry’s largest firms, but he’s also been a pioneer in one of the industry’s most important initiatives: enabling employees of private equity-backed companies to share in ownership of the companies where they work. The firm’s Broad-Based Employee Ownership has delivered on its…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. We went to Miami to sit down with the professor of infrastructure investing and Founder, Chairman, and Managing Partner of I Squared, Dr. Sadek Wahba. Sadek has blended academic knowledge and a practical approach to infrastructure investing to build I Squared into a $60B infrastructure investment firm in 14 years, some of which he has adroitly distilled into the 2024 book that he authored, Build: Investing in America’s Infrastructure. We had such a fascinating and wide-ranging discussion that I’ve decided to break down our conversation into chapters. “We are enormously boring by design”: From the World Bank to building a $60B infrastructure investing behemoth [00:00:00–00:16:19] Sadek has been investing in a category, infrastructure, that he calls “invsible until it’s missing.” He’s brought experience as an economist at The World Bank and running Morgan Stanley Infrastructure as CEO to bear as he has built out I Squared into a leading infrastructure investment…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. We went to Golub Capital’s New York office to sit down with Co-CEO David Golub. David Golub and his brother Lawrence both started their careers in private equity. It was their experiences in private equity in the 1990s that turned them into private credit pioneers. Lawrence and David have built Golub Capital into a $95B private credit behemoth, largely due to their pioneering decision to create the “one-stop” unitranche loan solution for sponsor-backed companies after spotting a gap in the sponsor finance market. Fast forward over 30 years, and Golub Capital is one of the leaders in private credit. David discussed how Golub has spent the balance of its life as a scaled specialist credit manager “honing the competitive advantages” that make the firm so unique. Golub has built a cadre of 200 high-quality sponsor relationships with many of the industry’s top private equity firms, which call on them when they are seeking sponsor financing for their companies.…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s podcast takes us to the heart of New York City to talk with James Li, the President and Partner of Davidson Kempner, a firm that was an early participant in the merger arbitrage, distressed debt, and opportunistic credit industries. Davidson Kempner’s heritage lies in cutting through complexity to find value. Founded in 1983, Davidson Kempner’s origins began in merger arbitrage, distressed debt, and opportunistic credit. The firm, which now has around 1,800 clients, began accepting outside capital in 1987 and has since built out its investment platform to include convertible arbitrage, long / short equities, asset-based lending, and real estate strategies. Davidson Kempner has since grown to almost $40B in AUM across public and private markets strategies. The firm has a penchant for navigating complex situations across public and private markets to opportunistically uncover value, noting that “no situation is too complex for [them].” James unpacked how…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. We were live from iCapital Connect’s conference in Phoenix, where we sat down with some of the industry’s leaders across asset management and wealth management. We spoke with Ava Mallin, Managing Director, US Private Wealth Solutions at Ardian. Ava brings a distinctive approach to how she works with the wealth channel. She emphasized that asset managers should treat capital as a client’s legacy rather than “just dollars.” Speaking of legacy, Ardian is a firm with a rich legacy. The firm was born in 1996, when AXA’s Chairman, Claude Bébéar, chairman of AXA, asked Dominique Senequier to create a private equity arm for the insurer. And so AXA Private Equity was born. The firm’s first fund launched with a $100M French Buyout fund and two external clients. Today, Ardian stands tall as a giant in private markets, spanning asset classes and managing over $200B AUM. As a firm that provides investment solutions and customized strategies, Ardian thinks deeply about the…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. We were live from AGM’s RIA Field Trip at Franklin Templeton’s New York office in Madison Square Park with Franklin Templeton’s Head of Private Markets - Americas Wealth Management Dave Donahoo to discuss the nuances of serving the wealth channel. Dave brings the perspective of someone who has seen the wealth channel handle multiple market cycles and an understanding of both traditional and alternative asset management, while always keeping the outcome for the end investor in mind. Dave started his career in the depths of the 2008 financial crisis at T. Rowe Price, where he worked with individual investors. He rose up the ranks of T. Rowe Price and then joined Blackstone as a Principal in the firm’s Private Wealth Solutions business before moving to Franklin Templeton as Head of Private Markets - Americas Wealth Management. Unpacking nuances in private markets, Dave discussed why he believes a “family of specialists” with a “narrow scope” is critical for a…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s podcast takes us to the heart of London, where we sat down with Maggie Fanari, the CEO of J Rothschild Capital Management Limited, manager of RIT Capital Partners plc. RIT blends a rich heritage with a modern approach to both asset allocation and private markets. Lord Jacob Rothschild founded Rothschild Investment Trust in 1971. RIT listed on the London Stock Exchange with total assets of £280M. Today, the firm stands tall as one of the UK’s largest investment trusts with over £4.7B of total assets. The firm’s permanent capital and family office heritage have enabled the firm to think long-term, according to Maggie. “Permanent capital is a privilege,” she said. Maggie has brought an institutional allocator’s background to RIT. She joined as CEO of RIT from Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan in 2024, where she was Senior Managing Director, Global Group Head of High Conviction Equities at OTPP, which has a global mandate to invest in public and private…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. We sat down with Mike Trihy, Head of Portfolio Management for the Venture Growth Evergreen strategy at Wellington Management. We were live from Berlin, which becomes the “capital of private capital” in June as private equity industry leaders make the annual pilgrimage to the city for one of the marquee private equity conferences, SuperReturn Berlin. With Prosek Partners and former Bloomberg TV journalist Deirdre Bolton as my producer, along with her team, we took over a Tiny Space cabin to hold big conversations with some of the industry’s leading alternative asset managers. Wellington Management has a rich heritage as an independently owned asset manager. The firm, which has taken a research-driven approach and long-term thinking to active management in public markets and, increasingly, in private markets, is nearing its 100-year anniversary. Wellington has grown to over $1.3T in AUM and is the largest sub-advisor in the world. Mike joined from Bow River…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. We sat down with Anthony Maniscalco, the Managing Partner and Business Head of Investcorp Strategic Capital Group (ISCG). We were live from Berlin, which becomes the “capital of private capital” in June as private equity industry leaders make the annual pilgrimage to the city for one of the marquee private equity conferences, SuperReturn Berlin. With Prosek Partners and former Bloomberg TV journalist Deirdre Bolton as my producer, along with her team, we took over a Tiny Space cabin to hold big conversations with some of the industry’s leading alternative asset managers. Investcorp has been a pioneer in private equity. Since its founding in 1982, the firm has grown from a “boutique Gulf firm” into a global and diversified alternative asset manager. Investcorp launched its Strategic Capital Group (SCG) (GP stakes) business long after its founding in 1982. But the firm brought in a pioneer to launch and build SCG into a leading GP stakes firm, which now has over…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. We sat down with Jake Elmhirst, Partner, Head of Private Wealth Secondaries Solutions and Head of Capital Formation at Coller Capital. We were live from Berlin, which becomes the “capital of private capital” in June as private equity industry leaders make the annual pilgrimage to the city for one of the marquee private equity conferences, SuperReturn Berlin. With Prosek Partners and former Bloomberg TV journalist Deirdre Bolton as my producer, along with her team, we took over a Tiny Space cabin to hold big conversations with some of the industry’s leading alternative asset managers. Coller Capital has been a pioneer in the rapidly growing secondaries market. Coller’s tagline? “First in secondaries.” Coller might be “first in secondaries.” The industry they focus on has moved to the forefront of private markets. Secondaries are coming in first for many LPs, in part because secondaries are now an active portfolio management solution for LPs (LP-led secondaries)…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. We sat down with Kyle Kniffen, Managing Director, Global Head of Alternatives, Third Party Wealth at Goldman Sachs. We were live from Berlin, which becomes the “capital of private capital” in June as private equity industry leaders make the annual pilgrimage to the city for one of the marquee private equity conferences, SuperReturn Berlin. With Prosek Partners and former Bloomberg TV journalist Deirdre Bolton as my producer, along with her team, we took over a Tiny Space cabin to hold big conversations with some of the industry’s leading alternative asset managers. A little over two years ago, I wrote on AGM about how, at $456B in AUM in alternatives, Goldman Sachs was a “sleeping giant” in private markets. In reality, Goldman is anything but a sleeping giant in private markets, having started its private equity business in 1984 and earning the distinction of being a top-5 alternatives manager by AUM across both traditional and alternative asset managers.…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. We sat down with Paul Desmarais III, the Co-Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Sagard, the fast-growing $46B global multi-strategy alternative asset manager. We were live from Berlin, which becomes the “capital of private capital” in June as private equity industry leaders make the annual pilgrimage to the city for one of the marquee private equity conferences, SuperReturn Berlin. With Prosek Partners and former Bloomberg TV journalist Deirdre Bolton as my producer, along with her team, we took over a Tiny Space cabin to hold big conversations with some of the industry’s leading alternative asset managers. Sagard combines a rich history and heritage of building asset management businesses with a modern approach to building a global alternative asset manager. Paul’s deep understanding of the industry comes from being part of a family of multiple generations of asset management pioneers in Canada who have built some of the industry’s largest financial services…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. We sat down with Brookfield Private Equity CEO Anuj Ranjan. We were live from Berlin, which becomes the “capital of private capital” in June as private equity industry leaders make the annual pilgrimage to the city for one of the marquee private equity conferences, SuperReturn Berlin. With Prosek Partners and former Bloomberg TV journalist Deirdre Bolton as my producer, along with her team, we took over a Tiny Space cabin to hold big conversations with some of the industry’s leading alternative asset managers. Brookfield has a rich legacy as an asset owner and operator of some of the “businesses that drive the global economy.” Brookfield is a firm where skin in the game (~25% of every fund includes an investment from Brookfield’s balance sheet) meets scale and synergies across its investment platform, which spans private equity, infrastructure, real estate, credit, and energy. Now, they are looking to own what’s next. What will the next era of private equity…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. We sat down with Vista Equity Partners’ Senior Managing Director, Co-Head of Flagship Fund, Monti Saroya. We were live from Berlin, which becomes the “capital of private capital” in June as private equity industry leaders make the annual pilgrimage to the city for one of the marquee private equity conferences, SuperReturn Berlin. With Prosek Partners and former Bloomberg TV journalist Deirdre Bolton as my producer, along with her team, we took over a Tiny Space cabin to hold big conversations with some of the industry’s leading alternative asset managers. Vista Equity Partners has been a pioneer in enterprise software investing. They have been at the forefront of every major technology platform shift, whether it was on-prem to cloud, the adoption of enterprise software, and now the agentification of the enterprise with AI. The $103B AUM scaled specialist software investor has dedicated its efforts to building “mission critical” enterprise software companies…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. We were live from Berlin, which becomes the “capital of private capital” in June as the private equity’s industry leaders make the annual pilgrimage to the city for one of the marquee private equity conferences, SuperReturn Berlin. Much of the SuperReturn conference is centered on fundraising. GPs take up every available space — from hotel rooms to Tiny Space cabins that line the parking spots on Budapester Strasse outside of the InterContinental conference venue — to conduct meetings with LPs. With Prosek Partners and former Bloomberg TV journalist Deirdre Bolton as my producer, along with her team, we took over a Tiny Space cabin to hold big conversations with some of the industry’s leading alternative asset managers. Our first conversation was with Apax Co-CEOs Andrew Sillitoe and Mitch Truwit. Apax is one of the pioneers in the private equity industry. The firm’s rich history dates back to the 1970s, when its founders, Alan Patricof (US), Sir Ronald Cohen…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s podcast takes us to the heart of Mayfair in London, where Blackstone Private Wealth COO Farhad Karim shared the firm’s history and evolution in Europe. He took a walk down memory lane to discuss the firm’s 25th anniversary in Europe as we walked through Berkeley Square from Blackstone’s current office to their new office at the other end of the square, highlighting how the firm has become the largest owner of commercial real estate in Europe and the importance of building a local presence in the region. Farhad took on the role of Chief Operating Officer of Blackstone Private Wealth in 2024 after a career at Blackstone that included serving as Chairman and Chief Operating Officer of Blackstone Europe and holding a senior leadership role in the firm’s Real Estate business. Farhad and I had a fascinating discussion about the evolution of Blackstone’s business in Europe and the firm’s Private Wealth business globally. We covered: Why it’s important to…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s episode dives deep into the world of wealth management with someone whose career is emblematic of the intersection of private markets and private wealth. We sat down with Larry Restieri, the CEO of Hightower. Larry is the CEO and a member of the Board of Directors at Hightower, a national wealth management firm that empowers financial advisors to deliver sophisticated investment and financial services to clients. Larry joined the firm in June 2025 from Goldman Sachs, where he was a Partner. Larry served as the CEO of Goldman’s AYCO business, which specializes in workplace financial planning and private wealth advisory services. He held a variety of leadership roles at Goldman across its wealth and asset management divisions, including heading up the Alternative Capital Markets business. Larry and I had a fascinating conversation about the continuing convergence of private markets and private wealth from someone who was at the forefront of this industry…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. We were live from iCapital Connect’s conference in Phoenix, where we sat down with some of the industry’s leaders across asset management and wealth management. Eric Muller is Portfolio Manager & Partner, CEO - BDCs for Oak Hill Advisors (OHA). Oak Hill, which was acquired by T. Rowe Price in December 2021, has $112B AUM across performing and distressed credit-related investments in North America, Europe and other geographies. Eric shares responsibility for leading OHA’s private credit business and has primary management responsibility for OHA’s BDCs. Prior to joining OHA in 2018, Mr. Muller worked in Goldman Sachs’ Merchant Banking Division, where he was a Partner in the Private Credit Group, responsible for leading its private senior lending business in North America and managing vehicles that invested across the spectrum of the credit market. With credit on the minds of many, Eric provided a nuanced perspective on the current state of the credit markets and…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. We were live from AGM’s RIA Field Trip at Brookfield’s New York office at Brookfield Place with Oaktree Managing Director and Co-Portfolio Manager Danielle Poli to unpack why private credit is at a crossroads and why dispersion is growing. Danielle has a unique perch to form a developed view on the current state of private credit. She sits at the intersection of public and private credit, providing her with perspectives on where opportunities and risks lie across the liquidity spectrum. Danielle is a founding member of Oaktree’s Global Credit strategy and its Investment Committee, which was established in 2017. She’s been an important contributor to its growth into a scaled multi-asset credit platform. She previously led Oaktree’s product specialist group, which she helped build into a global team supporting credit, private equity, and real estate. She joined Oaktree in 201 and has nearly two decades of experience in private markets. She has been named to…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Building community is central to enabling an industry to grow. There are few better ways to build community and foster trusted relationships than to break bread. As the wealth channel continues to expand its adoption of private markets, peer-to-peer learning becomes ever more important. Sharing experiences and perspectives is what will help the wealth channel adopt private market solutions thoughtfully and responsibly. That’s what happened at Franklin Templeton’s Private Markets RIA Advisory Council event and dinner at BLACKBARN recently. Bread was broken. Relationships were built. We also found time to record a podcast at a dinner table with Franklin Templeton’s Head of Private Markets - Americas Wealth Management Dave Donahoo and Summit Wealth Group’s CIO Chelsea Ganey. The discussion granted access to a direct, honest, and raw window into perspectives on how asset managers and wealth managers can work together to educate one another and help move the…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. We went to a mecca of football to film the latest episode. This conversation takes us to Turin, Italy, where we were in the Juventus Creator Lab with Italian football (I mean soccer for the Americans) legend and one of the best defenders of all time Giorgio Chiellini. Giorgio’s career and playing style were defined by Juventus’ very motto, fino alla fine (“until the end”). It’s also a mentality that he brings to every aspect of life on and off the pitch. After an illustrious playing career at one of the world’s biggest clubs, Juventus, and a career that also included two World Cup appearances for Italy and winning the Euro 2020 as the Captain of Italy, Giorgio came back home to Turin rejoin the club where he starred for 17 years: Juventus. Giorgio has gone from the pitch to the boardroom, helping to lead Juventus as the Director of Football Strategy. He has brought the player’s perspective to the business side of football, balancing the nuances of sports and…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s conversation provides a fascinating window into the world of how one of the industry’s largest wealth managers approaches private markets. We sat down with the man who holds the keys to the kingdom. Mark Sutterlin is the Head of Alternative Investments within the Investment Solutions Group at Bank of America. He leads the firm’s strategy and platform development across hedge funds, private credit, private equity, physical precious metals, and real estate, delivering a broad spectrum of institutional-grade investment solutions to advisors and their clients. Mark brings the advisor’s perspective to bear as he builds the alternative investments menu for Merrill and Bank of America Private Bank and helps educate advisors and clients on how and where to thoughtfully and appropriately include private markets in portfolios. Mark and I had a fascinating discussion. We covered: How GPs can work with private banks. What one of the largest private wealth…

Welcome to the 20th episode of the Alts Pulse, a collaboration between iCapital x Alt Goes Mainstream. In the latest episode of the Alts Pulse, we were live from iCapital Connect. iCapital Managing Director, Head of Private Asset Research & Model Portfolios, Kunal Shah, and I had a conversation about how to marry an institutional allocator’s mindset with the nuances of serving wealth clients. Kunal brings an institutional allocator’s mindset to the wealth channel. At iCapital, he’s focused on the identification, selection, and due diligence of private equity funds offered on the Flagship Platform. Prior to iCapital, Kunal was a Principal in the private markets group at Meketa Investment Group, a leading global investment consultant serving pension funds, endowments and foundations, and family offices. In that role, Kunal was responsible for leading and managing private equity fund investments. He joined Meketa in 2006 and invested globally, covering buyouts, venture capital, private debt, natural resources,…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s episode brings commercial real estate credit investing to life with someone who has real estate in his blood. Michael Comparato’s grandfather started building single-family homes in upstate New York in 1946. He built his first shopping center in 1958. Michael was born into a family where he was on construction sites from a young age. At 13, he was doing landscaping. At 15, he was hanging drywall. Today, Michael is a Senior Managing Director, Head of Real Estate and Portfolio Manager with Benefit Street Partners, as well as Chief Executive Officer of Franklin BSP Realty Trust, Inc (NYSE: FBRT). He also serves on the US Executive Committee. Prior to joining BSP in 2015, Michael was Head of U.S. Equity Investments at Ladder Capital. Before that, he was President at Bank Atlantic Commercial Mortgage Capital. Benefit Street Partners is part of Franklin Templeton’s family of specialists in private markets. BSP is a specialized private credit firm with over…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s episode is with a founder who is building mission-critical valuation and portfolio monitoring software for alternative asset managers. We are joined by Yann Magnan, the Co-Founder and CEO of 73 Strings, to discuss how valuation work and portfolio monitoring is moving from manual to automated and why that’s so important for the industry. 73 Strings has leveraged AI and automation to more seamlessly and cost-effectively extract data, monitor portfolios, and streamline middle-office processes for valuations. 73 Strings works with a number of the industry’s top alternative asset managers and has received investment from Blackstone, Growth Equity at Goldman Sachs Alternatives, Hamilton Lane, Golub, Fidelity International Strategic Ventures, and Broadhaven Ventures, amongst others. Yann has brought his experience as a senior member of the Duff & Phelps team, where he was EMEA Market Leader and member of the Global Operating Committee and as a Partner at EY’s…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. We were live from iCapital Connect’s conference in Phoenix, where we sat down with some of the industry’s leaders across asset management and wealth management. Hartley Rogers is a pioneer in private markets. He is the Executive Co-Chairman of Hamilton Lane, where he plays a significant role in investing and client relationship activities, as well as in strategic and organizational development. He is a Member of the Investment Committees and is the Chairman of the Board of Directors. Prior to joining Hamilton Lane in 2003, Hartley was a Managing Director in the private equity fund management areas at Morgan Stanley and at Credit Suisse. He started his career on Wall Street in 1981. This was a thoroughly fascinating conversation. Hartley’s wealth of knowledge made for a nuanced discussion that married the evolution of the business of asset management with why and how product structure innovation has unfolded as it has in private markets. We also dove into an…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s episode dives into the nuances of the numbers to discuss valuations, underwriting, and the state of private markets. We sat down with Brian Garfield, Managing Director and Global Head of the Portfolio Valuations practice within Lincoln International’s Valuations and Opinions Group. Brian provides valuation and transaction opinion services to public and private alternative asset managers. He leads a team of over 225 professionals, providing strategic oversight for the Global Portfolio Valuation practice which includes both our Portfolio Valuation and Asset Backed Finance teams situated across North America, EMEA and APAC. Brian’s team also produces the Lincoln Private Market Index, Lincoln Senior Debt Index, and Lincoln Default Index. Brian and his team specialize in estimating the fair value for an array of financial instruments, including direct investments in senior, unitranche and subordinated loans, as well as preferred equity, common equity,…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s episode unpacks the nuances of the middle market investing landscape with an industry expert who spearheads one of the leading middle market investment platforms. We sat down in Bridgepoint’s London office with Partner and Chief Investment Officer Xavier Robert. Xavier is a Partner of Bridgepoint and Chief Investment Officer, where he’s been a member of the firm for almost 28 years. He is a member of the Firm’s Group Management Committee and Investment Advisory Committee. He currently sits on the boards of MiQ, Kyriba, and Qualitest. He was previously a Board Member and Chair of the Remuneration Committee at eFront, which the firm sold to BlackRock. Prior to joining Bridgepoint, he worked at Total and Ernst & Young. Xavier and I had a fascinating and nuanced discussion about why the middle market is a compelling segment in the market and how Bridgepoint has expanded across asset classes. We discussed: How Bridgepoint’s origins as part of NatWest…

Welcome to the 19th episode of the Alts Pulse, a collaboration between iCapital x Alt Goes Mainstream. In the latest episode of the Alts Pulse, we were live from iCapital Connect. AlphaCore Wealth Advisory CEO & Founder Dick Pfister and I had a nuanced discussion about the intersection of wealth management, technology, and private markets. Dick is a pioneer of providing the wealth channel with access to private markets. He’s also a serial entrepreneur in both wealth management and private markets, bringing 25 years of experience across wealth advisory and financial services to bear as he builds AlphaCore. In 2015, he founded AlphaCore, which has become a leading wealth advisory firm. He serves as AlphaCore’s CEO and is a managing member of the Investment Committee. As a partner at Altegris, Dick democratized access to elite asset managers previously not available to the mainstream investor. In 2010, Dick and his partners sold Altegris to a Fortune 500 company. Dick and I had a fascinating discussion about…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s episode dives into the nuances of private markets with one of the industry’s leaders. We sat down with HarbourVest CEO John Toomey, where he leads a firm that has over $160B in AUM and has over 43 years of experience across primary funds, secondary transactions, direct co-investments, and building customized programs for LPs. John has been at HarbourVest for almost 30 years, joining the firm in 1997 as an Analyst in the Direct team. He spent 10 years as one of the leaders of the Secondary business before serving on Global Investment Committees for nearly a decade. He also served as the original CFO for the HarbourVest Global Private Equity vehicle, which went public in 2007 on Euronext Amsterdam. John is also a member of the Firm’s Conflicts Committee, Sustainable Investing Council, and DEI Council. He received a BA (cum laude) in Chemistry and Physics from Harvard University and an MBA from Harvard Business School. John and I had a fascinating and…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s conversation unpacks an emerging category within infrastructure investing that has a compelling set of market forces and mega trend tailwinds. We sat down in Stonepeak’s New York office with Stonepeak Credit Partner and Senior Managing Director Ryan Roberge. Ryan brings a diverse set of experiences to bear that helped him build an infrastructure credit business at Stonepeak. He previously covered the energy and infrastructure sectors for King Street, a New York-based hedge fund focused on distressed, special situations, and event driven credit investing. Prior to King Street, Ryan worked in the Energy group at TPG Capital, a large global alternative asset manager. Ryan started his career in Credit Suisse’s Energy Investment Banking Group. He received a Bachelor of Science in Finance from Louisiana State University. Ryan and I had a fascinating conversation on why infrastructure credit’s time is now. We covered: How Ryan’s background across energy…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s episode takes us to a hub of market structure, a powerhouse of trading, and a crossroads of public and private markets to discuss how private markets are in the midst of a market structure evolution. We sat down at Bloomberg’s NYC headquarters with Bloomberg’s Head of Fixed Income & Private Markets Brad Foster to discuss how technology and data are driving a convergence between public and private markets, particularly as it relates to the credit space. Brad is the Head of Fixed Income & Private Markets at Bloomberg, where he’s focused on delivering the data, analytics, and tools clients need to power public and private market investment strategies and workflows. Brad joined Bloomberg in June 2017 to lead its Enterprise Data Content business as well as its Fixed Income Evaluated Pricing (BVAL) offering. He was appointed Head of Fixed Income, including Securitized Products, in early 2023 and Head of Fixed Income & Private Markets in early 2024. Prior to…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s episode unpacks how to build a private equity firm within one of the largest and most unique investment platforms in private markets. We sat down in Brookfield Asset Management’s Brookfield Place office in downtown NY with David Nowak, the President of Brookfield’s Private Equity Group. David and I dove into a conversation about the private equity industry, Brookfield’s approach to private equity, and how the firm’s culture and DNA shapes how they work with portfolio companies and LPs. David has overall responsibility for the Private Equity Group’s North American business. He also serves as Chief Executive Officer of Brookfield Private Equity Fund. He joined Brookfield in 2011. He holds a MBA degree from Duke University, where he graduated as a Fuqua Scholar, and a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Western Ontario. David and I had a fascinating conversation about private equity and the Brookfield platform. We covered: How Brookfield’s…

It all comes back to the DNA. The firms that know who they are will know who to be. You can learn a lot about an investment firm by listening to what they say. Alt Goes Mainstream’s AGM Originals Series - The DNA: Capturing Culture - is dedicated to capturing the DNA of a firm by listening to what they say. The first season of The DNA stars EQT. In Stockholm, at EQT’s AIM this past summer, I sat down for conversations with nine EQT executives. Each executive came from different parts of the firm — and different parts of the world. Each had fascinating backgrounds and stories about how they ended up in private markets and worked to build EQT. But there was a single throughline threaded throughout all of the discussions: the consistency and frequency that each executive talked about the firm’s mission, vision, culture, and values. That’s why it all comes back to the DNA. Episode 3 features EQT's Lennart Blecher. Lennart Blecher joined EQT Partners in April 2007 and is the Chairperson of EQT Real Assets.…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s episode dives into what it takes to start, build, and scale an alternative asset manager. We sat down in Stable Asset Management’s London office with Erik Serrano Berntsen. Erik is the CEO of Stable, where he defines and executes the firm’s investment strategy. Stable is one of the largest and most tenured GP stake builders globally. The firm manages around $5B in assets and has built over 40 firms since 2006. Stable makes strategic seed and acceleration investments to launch and scale alternatives GPs across public and private markets. With offices in New York, London, and Palm Beach, the firm backs investment firm Founders who understand that extraordinary performance requires building exceptional organizations. Committed to education as a catalyst for change, Erik supports the LSE Alternative Investments Conference — the world’s largest student conference for alternatives, which is how we met 16 years ago — as well as Girls Who Invest and Girls Are…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s episode dives into how data and market structure are shaping private markets. We sat down in MSCI’s New York office with Luke Flemmer, the Head of Private Assets at MSCI to discuss how standardization and normalization of data can help bring efficiency, transparency, and liquidity to private markets. Luke brings a unique perspective to private markets. He was previously Managing Director, Head of Digital Strategy for Alternative Investments at Goldman Sachs Asset Management, and was Co-Founder and CEO of Lab49, a global solutions provider of investment and risk technology to asset managers and investment banks. When the ION Group acquired Lab49, Luke became Co-Head of ION’s Capital Markets Division, delivering software and solutions to the group’s global financial services customer base. Earlier in his career, Luke worked in the fields of robotics and artificial intelligence. He is a CFA charterholder. Luke and I had a fascinating conversation about…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. The Goldman Sachs Alternatives Summit “convened leaders across finance, geopolitics, technology, and culture” to discuss themes driving global markets. 2025’s Alternatives Summit was about “navigating a world in flux,” as the firm’s recap of its event noted. The event aimed to help investors cut through the noise and put together the pieces of the puzzle in a dynamic and increasingly complex world. Alt Goes Mainstream joined the event to have unscripted conversations with Goldman Sachs Alternatives leaders to cut through the noise by unpacking key themes and trends at the intersection of private markets and private wealth. In this special series, we went behind the scenes and interviewed six Goldman Sachs Alternatives leaders about their current thinking on private markets and how the firm has built and evolved its private markets capabilities. This conversation was with Jeff Fine, Partner, Global Co-Head of Alternatives Capital Formation within Goldman Sachs…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. The Goldman Sachs Alternatives Summit “convened leaders across finance, geopolitics, technology, and culture” to discuss themes driving global markets. 2025’s Alternatives Summit was about “navigating a world in flux,” as the firm’s recap of its event noted. The event aimed to help investors cut through the noise and put together the pieces of the puzzle in a dynamic and increasingly complex world. Alt Goes Mainstream joined the event to have unscripted conversations with Goldman Sachs Alternatives leaders to cut through the noise by unpacking key themes and trends at the intersection of private markets and private wealth. In this special series, we went behind the scenes and interviewed six Goldman Sachs Alternatives leaders about their current thinking on private markets and how the firm has built and evolved its private markets capabilities. This conversation was with Michael Bruun, Global Co-Head of Private Equity within Goldman Sachs Asset Management. He…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. The Goldman Sachs Alternatives Summit “convened leaders across finance, geopolitics, technology, and culture” to discuss themes driving global markets. 2025’s Alternatives Summit was about “navigating a world in flux,” as the firm’s recap of its event noted. The event aimed to help investors cut through the noise and put together the pieces of the puzzle in a dynamic and increasingly complex world. Alt Goes Mainstream joined the event to have unscripted conversations with Goldman Sachs Alternatives leaders to cut through the noise by unpacking key themes and trends at the intersection of private markets and private wealth. In this special series, we went behind the scenes and interviewed six Goldman Sachs Alternatives leaders about their current thinking on private markets and how the firm has built and evolved its private markets capabilities. This conversation was with Harold Hope, Partner, Global Head of Vintage Strategies, one of the world's largest…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. The Goldman Sachs Alternatives Summit “convened leaders across finance, geopolitics, technology, and culture” to discuss themes driving global markets. 2025’s Alternatives Summit was about “navigating a world in flux,” as the firm’s recap of its event noted. The event aimed to help investors cut through the noise and put together the pieces of the puzzle in a dynamic and increasingly complex world. Alt Goes Mainstream joined the event to have unscripted conversations with Goldman Sachs Alternatives leaders to cut through the noise by unpacking key themes and trends at the intersection of private markets and private wealth. In this special series, we went behind the scenes at the Goldman Sachs Alternatives Conference and interviewed six Goldman Sachs Alternatives leaders about their current thinking on private markets and how the firm has built and evolved its private markets capabilities. This conversation was with Kristin Olson, Partner, Global Head of…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. The Goldman Sachs Alternatives Summit “convened leaders across finance, geopolitics, technology, and culture” to discuss themes driving global markets. 2025’s Alternatives Summit was about “navigating a world in flux,” as the firm’s recap of its event noted. The event aimed to help investors cut through the noise and put together the pieces of the puzzle in a dynamic and increasingly complex world. Alt Goes Mainstream joined the event to have unscripted conversations with Goldman Sachs Alternatives leaders to cut through the noise by unpacking key themes and trends at the intersection of private markets and private wealth. In this special series, we went behind the scenes at the Goldman Sachs Alternatives Conference and interviewed six Goldman Sachs Alternatives leaders about their current thinking on private markets and how the firm has built and evolved its private markets capabilities. This conversation was with James Reynolds, Global Co-Head of Private…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. The Goldman Sachs Alternatives Summit “convened leaders across finance, geopolitics, technology, and culture” to discuss themes driving global markets. The 2025 Alternatives Summit was about “navigating a world in flux,” as the firm’s recap of its event noted. The event aimed to help investors cut through the noise and put together the pieces of the puzzle in a dynamic and increasingly complex world. Alt Goes Mainstream joined the event to have unscripted conversations with Goldman Sachs Alternatives leaders to cut through the noise by unpacking key themes and trends at the intersection of private markets and private wealth. In this special series, we went behind the scenes at the Goldman Sachs Alternatives Conference and interviewed six Goldman Sachs Alternatives leaders about their current thinking on private markets and how the firm has built and evolved its private markets capabilities. Our first conversation was with Matt Gibson, who is head of the Client…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s episode dives into the rapidly expanding world of secondaries with a senior leader at one of the pioneering firms in the secondaries space. We sat down at Franklin Templeton’s New York office with Taylor Robinson, a Partner on the Secondary team at Lexington Partners, which has over $77B in total capitalization and is part of Franklin Templeton’s family of private markets funds and strategies. Taylor, who joined the firm in 2008, is primarily focused on the origination, evaluation, and execution of secondary opportunities, including partnership and GP-led transactions. He’s also a member of Lexington’s ESG Steering Committee. Taylor and I had a fascinating conversation about the current state of the secondaries market. We covered many of the hot button topics and trends that are shaping the secondaries market, including: Why secondaries have become an integral part of many LPs portfolios. How secondaries have become a portfolio management tool for LPs.…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s episode features a pioneer who has been building the core infrastructure that is making private markets go mainstream. We talk with Gary Tenkman, a 30-year veteran of the fund administration world who is the CEO of Ultimus Fund Solutions. Ultimus serves over 450 clients and 2,300 funds, representing $725B of assets under administration, all handled by a team of over 1,100 professionals. Ultimus, which is backed by private equity firm, GTCR and, more recently, Stone Point, is able to help investment managers navigate a growing array of challenges that include elaborate fund structures and evolving compliance requirements. Gary has built a business that combines the best of technology and human experts in fund administration to serve many of the industry’s largest funds. Ultimus has also been a big part of the ability for private markets to innovate with evergreen and interval fund structures since they have the necessary infrastructure and services to…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s episode brings us to the apex of the wealth channel. We sat down in Goldman Sachs’ HQ at 200 West with Sara Naison-Tarajano, a Partner and Global Head of Private Wealth Management Capital Markets and Global Head of Goldman Sachs Apex Family Office Coverage. Sara is also responsible for the One Goldman Sachs Family Office initiative in the Americas. Sara has been at Goldman Sachs for over 26 years, where she’s worked in a number of roles across the firm, equipping her with a multi-disciplinary background that is brought to bear in her current role leading a global platform that delivers multi-asset investing, financing, and direct investment opportunities to some of the world’s largest family offices. Goldman Sachs Apex Family Office Coverage now serves more than 600 family offices across the globe. Sara and I had a fascinating discussion about the growing intersection between private markets and private wealth and what some of the wealth channel’s…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s episode brings infrastructure investing to life — literally. We sat down in and walked through one of Stonepeak’s data center assets with Managing Director and CEO of SP+ INFRA, Cyrus Gentry. Cyrus has played an integral role in Stonepeak’s rapid ascent as a firm and the growth of its wealth solutions business, Stonepeak+, joining early in the firm’s history and helping the firm grow to approximately $80B in AUM. Cyrus brings a private equity perspective to infrastructure investing. Prior to Stonepeak, he held investing roles at BC Partners and Advent International. He also serves as one of the Church Commissioners for the Church of England, who hold responsibility for managing the Church’s £11.1B permanent endowment fund. Cyrus and I had a fascinating and thought-provoking discussion about infrastructure investing and why and how it can fit within a wealth client’s portfolio. We covered: How Cyrus’ background in private equity investing has…

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Today’s episode takes us inside the world of wealth from the perspective of one of the industry’s largest alternative asset managers that has made the wealth channel core to its firm’s DNA from the beginning. We sat down with Sean Connor, Senior Managing Director and the President & CEO of Global Private Wealth at Blue Owl Capital, a firm with almost $300B in AUM. Sean highlighted a number of key insights for navigating and working with the wealth channel as he shared lessons learned from building a successful private wealth business at a large alternative asset manager. Sean is responsible for bringing the breadth of the Blue Owl investment platform to the global private wealth market. He’s at the forefront of Blue Owl’s private wealth initiatives globally and oversees fund formation, product structure innovation, capital raising, and client servicing. He also oversees business development, marketing, and operations for Private Wealth at the firm. Prior to…

It all comes back to the DNA. The firms that know who they are will know who to be. You can learn a lot about an investment firm by listening to what they say. Alt Goes Mainstream’s AGM Originals Series - The DNA: Capturing Culture - is dedicated to capturing the DNA of a firm by listening to what they say. The first season of The DNA stars EQT. In Stockholm, at EQT’s AIM this past summer, I sat down for conversations with nine EQT executives. Each executive came from different parts of the firm — and different parts of the world. Each had fascinating backgrounds and stories about how they ended up in private markets and worked to build EQT. But there was a single throughline threaded throughout all of the discussions: the consistency and frequency that each executive talked about the firm’s mission, vision, culture, and values. That’s why it all comes back to the DNA. Episode 2 features EQT's Jean Eric Salata. Jean Eric Salata is the Chairperson EQT Asia and Head of Private Capital Asia. Jean started the…