1 year ago
92 Alternative fintech platform iCapital has agreed to acquire structured investment platform SIMON Markets to “meaningfully enhance the alternative investing experience for advisors and their clients”.
iCapital is a global fintech platform focused on alternative investing for the asset and wealth management industries. The firm serves more than $125 billion in platform assets and employs more than 800 people.
SIMON Markets offers a digital platform designed to help financial advisors understand and manage structured investments, annuities, and other risk-managed products. The platform facilitates structured investments and annuity products with more than $48 billion of issuances in 2021.
Leveraging its embedded finance technology, SIMON delivers integrations across 50 plus product manufacturers and 50 plus wealth managers – including the largest IBDs, bank/regional broker-dealers and private banks, and more than 100 RIAs, as well as platform access to more than 100,000 advisors, according to the firm.
iCapital enlarges offering for wealth managers
The deal will automatically expand iCapital’s investment menu, and augment its technical capabilities, education offerings and support services for wealth managers.
SIMON’s platform, SPECTRUM, is a multi-dimensional allocation analysis and portfolio construction tool designed to evaluate how structured investments and/or annuities may fit into a portfolio.
Lawrence Calcano, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of iCapital, said: “Today’s wealth management professionals seek a premium technology platform and access to a broader range of alternative investment strategies that provide thoughtful ways to diversify and potentially enhance long-term returns in client portfolios. SIMON is a recognized leader in structured investments and annuities offering an exceptional user experience and a distribution network of impressive depth and breadth. We are thrilled to welcome the highly accomplished SIMON team to iCapital with whom we share a mission to expand access and efficiency of alternative investing across the industry. This acquisition provides our advisors with a much more robust platform and suite of tools to help them pursue successful investment outcomes for their clients.”
Jason Broder, Chief Executive Officer of SIMON, will join iCapital as Managing Director, Head of iCapital Solutions and member of the Operating Committee.
He will oversee the combined platform’s integration, market development, and sales of iCapital’s full suite of technology offerings. iCapital will also onboard many of the nearly 200 SIMON team members.
“We have long-admired iCapital and everything it has accomplished in the alternative investing space. After a highly collaborative exploratory process over recent months, it became abundantly clear that together we can create an unrivaled experience for our clients and set the stage for iCapital’s continued expansion of investment opportunities and support services for advisors. Together we’re delivering something the wealth management industry has wanted for a very long time – access to all alternative solutions under one, centralized platform”, said Broder.
iCapital provides the wealth management community with comprehensive research, education, and portfolio analytics tools to support advisors in understanding alternatives and incorporating them into their practices.
The firm offers AltsEdge, AI Insight and iCapital Portfolio Intelligence alongside a library of articles with insights on market trends, various asset classes within alternatives, the mechanics of private investing, emerging product strategies and practice management.
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