Founded in 2013, the rise of iCapital is an example of how tech platforms and similar businesses are widening access to private market investments and hedge funds; these areas have previously been the preserve of ultra-wealthy individuals and large institutions.

iCapital, the financial technology platform for alternative investments, has tied up two partnerships in the past few days. It has partnered with Bolton Global Capital, a US wealth management firm. 

In the second case, it is partnering with Envestnet, a wealth management systems business listed in New York. 

In the Bolton case, this firm will launch a customized marketplace powered by iCapital to deliver private equity, private debt, and real estate investment offerings to advisors across Latin America as well as US advisors servicing US resident and non-resident LATAM clients.

Unicorn Strategic Partners, a distribution partner to asset managers and a strategic partner to iCapital in the LATAM region, will support Bolton in its distribution efforts. Additionally, iCapital will offer research, due diligence, education, and investment product training to Bolton’s advisor network of more than 50 affiliated offices. Bolton was founded in 1985 and supports more than $12 billion in assets under administration.

Envestnet
Powered by SIMON from iCapital, the marketplace for risk-managed and alternative solutions, the integration with the Envestnet platform enhances advisors' capabilities. It streamlines the proposal-to-execution process for structured investments and offers access to analytical features. 

“For the first time, advisors can allocate to structured investments through the Envestnet proposal,” Dana D’Auria, co-CIO and group president, Envestnet Solutions at Envestnet, said. “The integration allows advisors to add fee-based structured investments into proposals, transact on those products and assess them next to more traditional asset classes without ever leaving the Envestnet ecosystem.”

In January, iCapital said that it was planning to expand its global development team with more than 100 new hires.

Founded in 2013, the rise of iCapital is an example of how tech platforms and similar businesses are widening access to private market investments and hedge funds; these areas have previously been the preserve of ultra-wealthy individuals and large institutions.

In August 2022 iCapital agreed to buy UBS’s alternative investment manager platform in the US. iCapital has been busy. In June of that year, Bank of America made a strategic investment in iCapital, and Morgan Stanley Investment Management expanded its US partnership in July. In October last year, it partnered with Ardian, a firm in the private investment space.