Episode summary
Monthly Alts Pulse EP 8: Taking the pulse of private markets with Lawrence Calcano, of iCapital
Alt Goes Mainstream
· · Hosts: Michael Sidgmore · Guests: Lawrence Calcano
Summary
Lawrence Calcano said private markets are seeing renewed momentum because investors have more confidence and are broadening their interest beyond credit into a wider range of strategies. He argued that the LP side is driving demand and that fundraising has improved from last year, even if it is not back to 2021 levels.
A major theme was product innovation for the wealth channel. Calcano said the market has moved well beyond simple feeder funds, with large managers building registered, evergreen, interval, and BDC-like structures that can serve accredited investors and, in some cases, a broader client base. He emphasized that many GPs are now being thoughtful about product design, infrastructure, and scale, and that firms like iCapital can help provide direct-investing services, capital call handling, and back-office support.
Calcano also framed private markets as still early in their wealth-channel adoption. He pointed to the vast pool of individual wealth, argued that education and user experience remain critical, and said the next phase will depend on better tools, reporting, and advisor-led planning. He expects continued growth in evergreen structures, continuation funds, and eventually some form of private markets access inside 401(k)s, but only with patience and careful implementation.
Key takeaways
- Calcano said LP demand is rising because investors feel more confident and are looking beyond credit into broader private-market strategies.
- He said the death of feeders is exaggerated, but direct access and registered evergreen products are growing faster because advisors want to serve more clients.
- Calcano argued that GPs need scaled infrastructure and thoughtful product design to succeed in the wealth channel, not just the biggest-name brands.
- He said private markets remain in the early innings because individual investors control roughly 125 to 130 trillion dollars, much of it still underallocated to alternatives.
- Calcano expects 401(k)s to eventually include some private-markets exposure, but only with “a lot of thoughtfulness” and acceptance of illiquidity.
Notable quotes
“I think there's just confidence. I think people are more confident than they might have been last year and and so we're seeing an acceleration increased interest”
“I think the reality is for a lot of products, you know, feeder is is a is a really uh a great way for people to get get access”
“If you want to cater to a client set, you have to think about their needs when you're building your own products and services”
“we expect that there will be continued interest in in all these evergreen products we're we're talking about across all the different strategies”
“we're still very much in the in the early innings. Because on one level you say, "Wow, trillions of dollars have been committed”
How the episode opens
Welcome back to the monthly alt pulse. I'm Michael Sigmore, co-founder and partner of Broad Haven Ventures and founder of the Alco Mainstream podcast. I'm here with Lawrence Kalcano, chairman and CEO of I Capital.
Welcome back. Thank you, Michael. Good to be here.
How are you? I'm good. Good.
Crazy busy, but good. Crazy busy. It feels like that time.
the world I think is really reigniting and uh we're really seeing continued interest in alts and I think really a growing interest. What is the cause of that? Is that equity markets?
Is that just there's a certain time and place in private markets where you feel like the the dam has broken and we've kind of gotten that next phase. I think there's just confidence. I think people are more confident than they might have been last year and and so we're seeing an acceleration increased interest in in subscribing to a broader range of of products.
You know, we talked a lot about credit being a big product last year and into early this year and it continues to be a very important product kind of in the scheme of the advisor's interest set, but I think people are also now really thinking about other types of strategies as well. Is that driven by the LP side or the GP side? Well, I I think it's really the LP that is expressing a preference and you know, you're seeing that in the fundraisers.
Last year, fundraisers were taking longer generally speaking. And while I don't think it's back to where it was in 21, um there's definitely more LP interest in the broader set of products as I said. And again, I think that really relates to confidence that people have broadly about the economy and maybe their financial position as well.
From the episode’s captions: roughly the first two minutes, lightly cleaned. Keep watching on YouTube →
Topics
- private markets
- alts product innovation
- wealth channel investing
- evergreen and interval funds
- gp structuring challenges
Companies and tickers mentioned
- iCapital
Watch the episode
Summary, takeaways and quote selection by Octagon. Quotes are short excerpts; the full conversation is in the episode.
More from Alt Goes Mainstream
-
Stonepeak's Cyrus Gentry - bringing infrastructure investing to the wealth channel -
Blue Owl's Sean Connor - a growth company in a growth industry investing in megatrends -
Alts Pulse #18: The Global Boom in Alternative Investments w/ iCapital CEO, Lawrence Calcano -
Building a software investing powerhouse in the age of AI with Vista's David Breach -
ING - How to build a private markets platform within a European bank. -
Live! Armen Panossian, co-CEO of Oaktree at Brookfield Oaktree Wealth Solutions RIA Council Meeting
Alt Goes Mainstream, this episode and its artwork belong to Michael Sidgmore. Octagon is not affiliated with the show; this page is an independent summary.
