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

Michael Sidgmore
  • 4.8 (32)
  • Investing
  • Updated Weekly

Alt Goes Mainstream podcast is the place to turn to for interviews with some of the brightest and most experienced minds in the world at the intersection private markets and wealth management. AGM dives into investment strategies like private equity (PE), private credit, venture capital (VC), secondaries, GP stakes, infrastructure, real estate, wealth management, and comprehensively covers tools and frameworks for approaching private markets, such as asset allocation, evergreen funds, model portfolios, and more. For anyone looking to invest into private markets (from experienced wealth managers to family offices to the individual investor looking for a more diversified investment portfolio), you’ll hear inside stories from executives and founders at some of the world’s largest financial institutions, alternative asset managers firms, and wealth management firms. More than a personal finance podcast, Alt Goes Mainstream dives deep into trends, investment strategies, firm building lessons, and innovative technologies that are enabling investors to access private markets.

  1. Juventus' Giorgio Chiellini - life lessons in sports and business from a world-class performer on and off the field

    3h ago

    Juventus' Giorgio Chiellini - life lessons in sports and business from a world-class performer on and off the field

    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 business. Despite the demands that Giorgio faced on the field as a player to maintain a standard of play at the highest levels of the game, he found time during his career to pursue his passion for business. He received his MBA while playing for Juventus and also was involved in the player development side in his final years as a player at LAFC. More recently, he became an investor in LAFC and in Mercury13, a multi-club investor in women’s football teams, including FC Como. He’s also an active investor in the European startup community. Giorgio and I had a wide-ranging and fascinating conversation that covered several dimensions of the business of sport. We discussed: How teams, owners, and investors can balance both the sport and business aspects of the game.What it means for sports now that players can have bigger social followings than their clubs or leagues.How Juventus has built and amplified its brand through initiatives like the Creator Lab.How clubs like Juventus can help players build their off-field brand while maintaining a high-quality on-field product.How Giorgio’s work off the field while playing informed how he wanted to spend his time post-career in business.What Giorgio’s day-to-day is like as Director of Football Strategy for Juventus.Why Giorgio invested in LAFC and what he thinks about the future of the MLS.What American owners and investors can learn from European soccer clubs and owners, and what European clubs and owners can learn from American owners and investors.Thanks, Giorgio, for sharing your wisdom, expertise, and enthusiasm at the intersection of sports and business. Note: this episode was filmed in October 2025 with a plan to publish the conversation around the World Cup.Show Notes 00:00 Split Second Decision 01:06 A Message from Our Sponsor, Ultimus 02:10 Meet Giorgio Chiellini 04:17 What Is the Juventus Creator Lab 04:36 Building Fans Through Content 05:27 Football Brand Goes Global 06:15 Revenue From Winning 06:43 Two Hearts One Club 07:52 Winning Versus Storytelling 08:40 Fans Everywhere Now 09:27 Too Many Games Problem 09:51 Stakeholders and Calendar 11:00 Owner Advice Communication 11:28 From Kid to Club  14:12 Film Study for Matches 15:02 The Saka Tactical Foul 17:26 Social Media and Mental Health 29:32 US World Cup Reality 29:45 Grassroots Long Game 30:09 MLS and USL Momentum 30:14 Stadiums and Growth 30:20 MLS Season vs Playoffs 30:46 Supporters Shield Incentives 31:11 Travel and Rest Mentality 31:33 Europe Stakes Comparison 31:54 Highlights Era Question 32:24 Bite-Sized Sports Culture 33:40 Choosing What to Watch 33:55 Sports Must Adapt 34:33 Owners Business View 35:15 TV Rights and Strategy 36:05 Institutional Money Trend 36:42 Why Funds Love Sports 37:04 Balancing Profit and Emotion 38:12 Fiduciary Duty vs Winning 39:15 Permanent Capital Advantage 40:42 Mission Values Legacy 41:54 Juventus DNA and Family 44:31 Leadership Lessons Learned 45:38 From Captain to Executive 47:05 Humanity and Energy 48:21 Player to Business Challenges 50:00 Investing in Italian Startups 51:47 How He Picks Investments 52:43 Innovation and AI in Sport 53:16 Favorite Alternative Investment 54:34 Profitability and Winning 55:21 Closing A Word from Our Sponsor, Ultimus This episode of Alt Goes Mainstream is brought to you by Ultimus, the full-service fund administrator and transfer agent powering asset managers in private and public markets. As alts go mainstream, you need real expertise to handle complex fund structures, connect with key distribution partners, and handle sophisticated compliance, reporting, and transparency demands. That’s Ultimus: high-tech, high-touch solutions for over 450 clients and 2,500 funds with $775B in assets under administration. Backed by an expert team of over 1,200 employees, they place client service at the core of their business, helping you navigate complexity during your fund structuring or launch and then supporting you through every stage of growth. Whether you’re already in the market or thinking about entering private wealth, you can trust their team’s deep expertise in retail alternatives to help you reach your goals. Learn more at ultimusfundsolutions.com or email info@ultimusfundsolutions.com. We thank Ultimus for their support of alts going mainstream. Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant.

    56 min
  2. Bank of America's Mark Sutterlin - why being a good investor in private markets is table stakes

    6d ago

    Bank of America's Mark Sutterlin - why being a good investor in private markets is table stakes

    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 allocators looks for in GPs.How Merrill approaches different product structures to deliver solutions across the wealth client spectrum.What constitutes a manager’s edge.I loved this conversation with Mark, who takes such a thoughtful approach and brings a true passion to helping clients and advisors build and protect wealth. Thanks Mark for sharing your expertise, wisdom, and passion on private markets and private wealth. Show Notes 00:00 Investor Edge Beyond Returns 00:32 Sponsor Message from Ultimus 01:41 Meet Mark Sutterlin 04:15 Advisor Trust and Responsibility 04:24 Penetration Across Wealth Tiers 04:38 Scaling Alts Across Books 04:49 Evergreen to Drawdown Spectrum 05:12 Building the Shelf Challenge 05:32 Evergreen Role in Portfolios 05:42 Serving Broad Client Needs 06:06 Optionality Not One Product 06:20 Diligence as Core Identity 06:48 Nuance in Private Credit 07:27 Long-Term Themes Overlay 07:56 Core and Satellite Question 08:28 Drawdown vs Evergreen Tradeoffs 08:48 Advisor Client Feedback Loop 09:25 Evergreens Now Dominate Flows 09:49 Evergreen Growing Pains 10:14 Education and Expectations 10:42 Rotation Within Evergreens 11:11 Who Can Run Evergreens Well 11:35 Scale Deal Flow Allocation Policy 12:29 Post Sale Servicing Matters 12:52 How Managers Should Service 13:23 Transparency Builds Loyalty 14:03 Vetting Managers for Private Banks 14:45 Investor Skill Is Table Stakes 15:22 Thousand Funds Deep Diligence 16:07 Unpacking Firm DNA 16:23 Private Wealth Is High Touch 16:53 Eyes Wide Open Expectations 17:14 Best GPs Listen and Adapt 18:12 Customization Versus Scale 19:13 Specialists and Custom Funds 19:57 Proposal Tools for Advisors 20:43 Menu Design From Client Needs 21:25 Differentiation in UHNW 22:31 Co-Invest and Capacity Access 24:43 Tech DLT and Streamlining 25:38 Biggest Blocker Education Gap 26:45 Misconception Complexity 27:52 Alts Invitationals Bootcamp 29:45 Where Advisors Are Today 30:16 What Why How Framework 31:32 Implementation Needs Support 31:51 Scaling the Alts Business 32:45 Open Architecture Platform 33:01 Lifecycle Ops Risk Controls 33:40 Where to Invest Next 33:53 Infrastructure and DLT Readiness 34:42 Future Growth Sources 35:37 Advisors Yet to Adopt 36:00 Balanced Growth Outlook 36:58 Client Sentiment Today 38:11 Patience and Long-Term Adoption 38:51 Next Gen Investor Mindset 40:43 Defining a Manager’s Edge 41:23 Specialization and Storytelling 42:31 Building a Menu of Edges 42:47 Business Plan Plus Open Mind 43:44 Advice for GPs Pitching Merrill 44:39 Platform Differentiation and Exclusivity 46:47 What Worries Mark Today 48:19 Excited About AI and Infrastructure 50:42 Wrap Up and Thanks A Word from Our Sponsor, Ultimus This episode of Alt Goes Mainstream is brought to you by Ultimus, the full-service fund administrator and transfer agent powering asset managers in private and public markets. As alts go mainstream, you need real expertise to handle complex fund structures, connect with key distribution partners, and handle sophisticated compliance, reporting, and transparency demands. That’s Ultimus: high-tech, high-touch solutions for over 450 clients and 2,500 funds with $775B in assets under administration. Backed by an expert team of over 1,200 employees, they place client service at the core of their business, helping you navigate complexity during your fund structuring or launch and then supporting you through every stage of growth. Whether you’re already in the market or thinking about entering private wealth, you can trust their team’s deep expertise in retail alternatives to help you reach your goals. Learn more at ultimusfundsolutions.com or email info@ultimusfundsolutions.com. We thank Ultimus for their support of alts going mainstream. Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant.

    52 min
  3. iCapital's Kunal Shah - the private markets mindset wealth managers need: live from iCapital Connect

    Jun 1

    iCapital's Kunal Shah - the private markets mindset wealth managers need: live from iCapital Connect

    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, and infrastructure investments. He also developed and led Meketa’s secondary funds purchase practice. Kunal has also served on various LP advisory boards. Prior to Meketa, Kunal was an analyst at The Vanguard Group.  Kunal and I finally turned all those hallway conversations we had at iCapital’s old office of 441 Lexington into a podcast! We had a fascinating discussion about how to evaluate alternative asset managers and what makes a great manager. We covered: How should wealth managers approach private markets?Why it’s important to “always be committed” rather than try to time vintages.Are evergreen structures a “game changer” for the wealth channel and a foundational piece for model portfolios?What features does a GP need to run an evergreen fund structure?What does the centralization of the CIO function and OCIO consolidation in the wealth channel mean for GPs?Thanks, Kunal, for sharing your passion, wisdom, and expertise at the intersection of private markets and private wealth, and for a great conversation that tied together how private markets and private wealth are changing as new product structures and product innovation take shape.

    18 min
  4. Benefit Street Partners' Michael Comparato - the opportunity in commercial real estate credit

    May 27

    Benefit Street Partners' Michael Comparato - the opportunity in commercial real estate credit

    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 $92B in AUM. The firm manages a wide range of private credit strategies, including direct lending, special situations, commercial real estate debt, infrastructure debt, asset-backed finance, structured credit, and liquid credit. It also manages a non-traded Business Development Company and publicly-listed mortgage REIT. Since BSP was acquired by Franklin Templeton in 2019, it has partnered with the $1.7T investment manager to expand how it structures various products and funds, enabling more access to the private credit asset class for wealth investors. From his perch as the Head of BSP’s Real Estate business, Michael has the perspective of how one of the industry’s scaled real estate investment firms is approaching commercial real estate credit and where the firm sees opportunity.  Michael and I had a fascinating conversation about the evolution of CRE credit and why now might be an interesting time in the CRE credit space. We covered: Why CRE, why now.What bank retrenchment means for CRE credit investors today.The relative resilience of multi-family.The maturity wall myth.Is the “extend and pretend” activity a reality?How AI impacts commercial real estate.Thanks Michael for sharing your passion, wisdom, and expertise on commercial real estate credit. Show Notes 00:00 Meet Michael Comparato 01:17 Real Estate Roots 03:25 Early Lessons and Purpose 03:35 Hurricanes And Tenants 05:05 Story Over Spreadsheet 06:49 Why Origination Wins 08:43 Family Business Ethos 10:59 Trust And Transparency 11:27 Lending Through Covid 13:05 Structuring For Uncertainty 13:56 Boom Times Underwriting Shifts 16:54 Crowded Class A Trade 18:19 Are Values Fair Today 21:46 Operator Shakeout 23:59 Scale and Market Structure 26:16 Banks Pull Back Credit 27:59 Private Credit Fills Gap 29:24 Who Holds Last Dollar Risk 29:29 Returns and Competition 30:35 Competition Compresses Yields 30:58 Maturity Wall Myth 33:05 How Investors Bucket Credit 36:04 Wealth Channel Opportunity 37:49 Why Credit Beats Equity Now 41:58 Megatrends and AI Fears 44:40 Shelter and Multifamily Focus 46:11 Community and Social Real Estate 48:16 Real Estate Constant Evolution 51:06 CRE Credit vs Direct Lending 53:21 Final Wrap and Outro A Word from Our Sponsor, Ultimus This episode of Alt Goes Mainstream is brought to you by Ultimus, the full-service fund administrator and transfer agent powering asset managers in private and public markets. As alts go mainstream, you need real expertise to handle complex fund structures, connect with key distribution partners, and handle sophisticated compliance, reporting, and transparency demands. That’s Ultimus: high-tech, high-touch solutions for over 450 clients and 2,500 funds with $775B in assets under administration. Backed by an expert team of over 1,200 employees, they place client service at the core of their business, helping you navigate complexity during your fund structuring or launch and then supporting you through every stage of growth. Whether you’re already in the market or thinking about entering private wealth, you can trust their team’s deep expertise in retail alternatives to help you reach your goals. Learn more at ultimusfundsolutions.com or email info@ultimusfundsolutions.com. We thank Ultimus for their support of alts going mainstream.

    54 min
  5. 73 Strings' Yann Magnan - unlocking valuation intelligence in private markets

    May 7

    73 Strings' Yann Magnan - unlocking valuation intelligence in private markets

    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 Transaction Advisory Services to help bring valuation and portfolio monitoring solutions into the mainstream. Yann and I had a fascinating conversation about how technology innovation and AI are impacting private markets and perspectives on valuation work today. We discussed: The challenges with manual valuation services businesses.How to create uniformity and standardization with private markets fund performance data.How AI is changing private markets post-investment reporting processes.Does automation in private markets help big funds or small funds more?The evolution of post-investment private markets market structure.The biggest technology innovation still missing from private markets.Why the growth of the wealth channel and evergreen funds increases the need for more streamlined reporting and valuation solutions.Thanks Yann for coming on the show to share your expertise, insights, and passion about private markets. Show Notes 00:00 AI Since Day One 01:06 A Message from our Sponsor, Ultimus 02:02 Introduction to Yann Magnan 04:11 From Manual To Automated 04:44 Excel Google Email 04:58 Cloud And Early AI 05:07 Governed Auditable Process 05:30 Founding 73 Strings 05:36 Two Valuation Platforms 05:55 Scaling With Alts Growth 06:28 Evergreen Acceleration 06:54 Retail Investor Expectations 07:09 Transactions Need Fresh NAVs 07:44 Valuations For Transactions 08:14 Continuation Vehicles Context 08:42 Reporting To Trading Shift 09:07 Illiquid Vs Liquid Compare 09:18 Mimicking Public Markets 09:43 Valuation Philosophy Changes 10:27 Back Office To Front Office 11:25 New Stakeholders To Balance 11:59 Why Private Must Feel Public 12:20 Transparency And Liquidity 13:18 Is Liquidity Good 15:11 Evergreen Process Differences 16:09 Higher Frequency Requirements 18:00 Tech Leverage Points 18:53 People Plus Technology 19:44 Portfolio Data As DNA 21:02 No Single Valuation Standard 21:47 Consistency Over Time 22:20 Human In The Loop 22:42 Art And Science Framework 24:03 No One Best Method 24:55 Wealth Channel Education 25:30 What LPs Should Ask 26:46 What Top GPs Want 27:38 Global Tech Adoption 28:49 Fundraising Drives Ops 30:23 AI Data Extraction Story 31:48 Standardizing Data Labels 32:21 Data Model Requirements 32:52 Is Data A Moat 33:14 Turning Data Into Insights 33:54 Scale Versus Specialization 35:04 Tech Helps Small Managers 36:21 AI Impact On All Funds 36:44 Starting Before GenAI Boom 37:42 ML And NLP Foundations 38:40 Agents Accelerate Valuations 39:26 Overnight Valuation Refresh 39:57 More Frequent Valuations 40:10 Limits Of Daily Data 41:03 Explainability And Trust 41:42 Next Market Structure Shift 42:09 Digital GP LP Data Sharing 43:12 Interconnection Needs Trust 43:46 Closing Thanks A Word from Our Sponsor, Ultimus This episode of Alt Goes Mainstream is brought to you by Ultimus, the full-service fund administrator and transfer agent powering asset managers in private and public markets. As alts go mainstream, you need real expertise to handle complex fund structures, connect with key distribution partners, and handle sophisticated compliance, reporting, and transparency demands. That’s Ultimus: high-tech, high-touch solutions for over 450 clients and 2,500 funds with $775B in assets under administration. Backed by an expert team of over 1,200 employees, they place client service at the core of their business, helping you navigate complexity during your fund structuring or launch and then supporting you through every stage of growth. Whether you’re already in the market or thinking about entering private wealth, you can trust their team’s deep expertise in retail alternatives to help you reach your goals. Learn more at ultimusfundsolutions.com or email info@ultimusfundsolutions.com. We thank Ultimus for their support of alts going mainstream. Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant.

    44 min
  6. Hamilton Lane's Hartley Rogers - pioneering private markets: Live from iCapital Connect

    May 5

    Hamilton Lane's Hartley Rogers - pioneering private markets: Live from iCapital Connect

    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 area that is Hartley’s passion: venture and the innovation economy. We covered: Hamilton Lane’s evolution scaling from 50 people in a single office to 800 people across 22 offices.The transformation from investment consulting into a solutions provider and asset manager for investors.The importance of data, tools, access, and portfolio construction to manage the increasing complexity of private markets.How will the wealth channel invest in private markets?The misconceptions of evergreens being “ATMs.”What is the “special sauce” in constructing an evergreen portfolio?How secondaries can help feed the evergreen fund engine.What defines a manager’s edge.What private markets strategies excite Hartley.I’m really excited to share this conversation with you all, as it’s equal parts invigorating and informative. Thanks Hartley for sharing your wisdom, expertise, and passion about private markets. Show Notes00:00 Hamilton Lane -Then and Now 03:55 Hartley’s Origin Story 04:39 Hamilton Lane’s Consulting Roots 04:57 From Consulting to OCIO Partner 05:15 Scaling Changed the Job 06:53 Why Clients Still Need Help 07:15 Trillions in Private Markets 07:44 Mega-Managers and Complements 08:56 Finding Smaller Manager Alpha 09:20 Middle Market Opportunity 09:47 Why Companies Stay Private 10:56 Churn and New Entrants 11:17 GP Skillset Has Expanded 11:51 From Leverage to Operations 12:02 Data Transforms Underwriting 12:43 Hamilton Lane Data Advantage 13:33 Secondaries and Evergreen Rise 14:04 Evergreen Design and Liquidity 14:40 Why The Wealth Channel Prefers Evergreens 15:41 Evergreen Diversification Needs 16:47 Allocating Core vs Satellite 18:44 Evergreens Evolve Like ETFs 34:27 Closing A Word from Our Sponsor, Ultimus This episode of Alt Goes Mainstream is brought to you by Ultimus, the full-service fund administrator and transfer agent powering asset managers in private and public markets. As alts go mainstream, you need real expertise to handle complex fund structures, connect with key distribution partners, and handle sophisticated compliance, reporting, and transparency demands. That’s Ultimus: high-tech, high-touch solutions for over 450 clients and 2,500 funds with $775B in assets under administration. Backed by an expert team of over 1,200 employees, they place client service at the core of their business, helping you navigate complexity during your fund structuring or launch and then supporting you through every stage of growth. Whether you’re already in the market or thinking about entering private wealth, you can trust their team’s deep expertise in retail alternatives to help you reach your goals. Learn more at ultimusfundsolutions.com or email info@ultimusfundsolutions.com. We thank Ultimus for their support of alts going mainstream. Hamilton Lane Disclaimer: The views expressed herein are those of the speaker as of the date of recording and are subject to change. This content is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice, an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy any security or investment product.

    36 min
  7. Lincoln International's Brian Garfield - how is AI impacting private markets valuations?

    Apr 30

    Lincoln International's Brian Garfield - how is AI impacting private markets valuations?

    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, option and warrants. His expertise also includes valuing secondary fund interests, co-investments, and GP stakes. Prior to joining Lincoln, Brian spent more than six years at Duff & Phelps, LLC, where he advised a wide range of alternative asset managers. Brian and I had a fascinating conversation about the current state of valuations and underwriting in private markets. We discussed: How is AI impacting SaaS company valuations?Taking stock of the current fundamentals of private companies.Is the “iceberg of deals” melting?How indices and benchmarks are bringing a “deeper level of transparency than price” to a market.How is continuation vehicle activity impacting private markets?How has the growth of evergreen funds impacted the world of valuations?Thanks Brian for sharing your expertise, insights, and passion about private markets and valuations. Show Notes00:00 AI Hype Reality Check 01:01 A Message From Our Sponsor, Ultimus 01:57 Introducing Brian Garfield 04:12 Art Versus Science in Valuations 04:55 Tech Automation Transparency 06:07 Valuation For New Investors 07:35 Entry Price Anchor 08:51 From Entry To Exit 10:06 Cycles And The Public Versus Private Gap 10:45 Lincoln Private Market Index 11:55 AI And Software Bifurcation 16:36 Private Market Health Signals 17:49 2021 Vintage Leverage Trap 19:47 Exit Logjam Continuation Vehicles 21:06 Winners Path To Exits 22:37 Deal Flow Thawing 23:33 Capital Shifts and Yields 25:56 Underwriting Discipline Today 28:52 AI Winners and Specialists 30:38 Energy Shock and Valuations 35:11 Public Private Convergence 36:17 Indexes and Transparency 38:03 Evergreen Cadence Shift 41:26 Standardization and Data Tech 43:09 AI Querying and Backtesting 46:42 Wrap Up A Word from Our Sponsor, Ultimus This episode of Alt Goes Mainstream is brought to you by Ultimus, the full-service fund administrator and transfer agent powering asset managers in private and public markets. As alts go mainstream, you need real expertise to handle complex fund structures, connect with key distribution partners, and handle sophisticated compliance, reporting, and transparency demands. That’s Ultimus: high-tech, high-touch solutions for over 450 clients and 2,500 funds with $775B in assets under administration. Backed by an expert team of over 1,200 employees, they place client service at the core of their business, helping you navigate complexity during your fund structuring or launch and then supporting you through every stage of growth. Whether you’re already in the market or thinking about entering private wealth, you can trust their team’s deep expertise in retail alternatives to help you reach your goals. Learn more at ultimusfundsolutions.com or email info@ultimusfundsolutions.com. We thank Ultimus for their support of alts going mainstream. Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant.

    48 min
  8. Bridgepoint's Xavier Robert - building a "middle market global champion"

    Apr 23

    Bridgepoint's Xavier Robert - building a "middle market global champion"

    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 Banking Group helped to shape the firm’s early days as an independent investment platform.The “entrepreneurial story” of Bridgepoint.The story of Bridgepoint’s IPO and how everyone from the CEO to the receptionist all had shares in the company pre-IPO.The importance of being local in markets across Europe but operating as a single team.The expansion of Bridgepoint’s platform across credit, infrastructure, and secondaries.Why Europe, why now.Why the middle market is an attractive segment for investment.Sizing up the middle market investment opportunity and how the size and scale of middle market companies provide investors with more control of exit outcomes.What drives returns in the middle market.Why and how Bridgepoint has approached working with the wealth channel.Thanks Xavier for coming on the show to share your wisdom, expertise, and passion for private markets, investing, and the European mid-market. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome and Setting 00:36 Bridgepoint Origins 02:14 Team Culture Ownership 03:33 Platform Full Circle 04:06 Partnering With Founders 06:06 Why Middle Market 08:29 Exits and Market Shifts 10:12 Value Creation Playbook 12:07 Bridgepoint Competitive Edge 14:05 Europe Local Advantage 16:15 Europe Returns Misconceptions 17:26 US Firms and Competition 18:29 Geopolitics and Expansion 19:57 Middle East Growth Story 20:45 Wealth Channel Strategy 21:48 Why Private Markets Win 22:25 Responsible Access For Wealth 23:11 Building An Evergreen Platform 25:40 Why Combine Infra And PE 28:35 Evergreen Deal Allocation 30:42 Scaling Funds Without Dilution 32:41 Kyriba Deal Lessons 36:34 What Excites Middle Market 37:45 Building Asset Management Today 39:27 Global Middle Market Ambition 40:49 Full Circle Closing Thoughts * Note: This episode was originally recorded in January 2026.

    41 min
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Alt Goes Mainstream podcast is the place to turn to for interviews with some of the brightest and most experienced minds in the world at the intersection private markets and wealth management. AGM dives into investment strategies like private equity (PE), private credit, venture capital (VC), secondaries, GP stakes, infrastructure, real estate, wealth management, and comprehensively covers tools and frameworks for approaching private markets, such as asset allocation, evergreen funds, model portfolios, and more. For anyone looking to invest into private markets (from experienced wealth managers to family offices to the individual investor looking for a more diversified investment portfolio), you’ll hear inside stories from executives and founders at some of the world’s largest financial institutions, alternative asset managers firms, and wealth management firms. More than a personal finance podcast, Alt Goes Mainstream dives deep into trends, investment strategies, firm building lessons, and innovative technologies that are enabling investors to access private markets.

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