Private Markets: Current Landscape, Growth Outlook, and Clearstream’s Role

Private markets have become a cornerstone of wealth management strategies, evolving from niche allocations to mainstream components of high-net-worth portfolios. In 2026, this trend is accelerating. Higher interest rates, persistent inflation, and liquidity constraints have pushed investors toward alternative assets that offer diversification, resilience, and long-term value creation.

Private equity and private credit remain dominant allocations, while infrastructure and real estate continue to attract investors seeking stability and inflation protection. Semi-liquid structures—such as evergreen funds ELTIFs and LTAFs —are gaining traction especially among retail and private wealth clients as solutions to traditional liquidity challenges. And with regulation easing, inflows into private markets from the wealth sector are primed to grow exponentially.

However, alongside these opportunities, investors must consider the risks inherent to private market exposure. These include illiquidity, long investment horizons, valuation uncertainty, and concentration risk, which can affect portfolio flexibility and performance during market stress. While operational barriers are being reduced through innovation, these investment risks remain and require careful due diligence and diversification strategies.

Connecting Capital with Opportunity: Private Markets in private wealth portfolios

Clearstream’s recent event at Mansion House in London, gathered leading voices from the financial industry to examine one of the most transformative trends in wealth management: the rise of private markets in private wealth portfolios. As traditional markets face volatility and compressed returns, private assets are increasingly recognized as a strategic lever for diversification, resilience, and long-term value creation.

The growing importance of Private Markets

Private markets—covering private equity, private credit, real estate, and infrastructure—have evolved from niche allocations to globally scaled investment opportunities, fueled by cross-border wealth flows. This growth is reshaping investor access through semiliquid structures such as evergreens and ELTIFs, which offer greater flexibility and liquidity. At the same time, distribution is increasingly shifting toward wealth management, creating a need for digital solutions and operational scale to meet rising demand.

Insights from industry leaders

André Schnurrenberger of Novantigo set the tone by pointing to a structural shift in private markets within wealth management, with private assets becoming an increasingly central component of client portfolios. Growth is being driven by a move away from closed‑ended structures toward evergreen and semi‑liquid vehicles, particularly in private credit, infrastructure and diversified private equity strategies. As competition intensifies, brand strength, long‑term partnerships and scalable operating models are emerging as critical success factors in capturing future wealth flows.

Current allocations: Private Markets at the portfolio core

A panel discussion at the event, featuring experts from UBS, Barclays, Lombard Odier, and NatWest Wealth, explored three critical themes: current allocations, future strategic shifts, and manager selection. The discussion highlighted that private markets have moved firmly into the portfolio core, particularly within wealth management. Private equity and private credit currently lead allocations, while infrastructure and real estate continue to play an essential role in diversification and inflation protection. Even relatively modest allocations were noted to deliver a meaningful impact on overall portfolio outcomes.

Strategic outlook: Growth, structures, and liquidity solutions

Looking ahead, panelists anticipated continued growth in private credit and infrastructure, driven by their income profile and resilience, alongside selective expansion in private equity—especially in sectors such as technology and healthcare. Structural innovation is shaping this evolution: secondary markets are increasingly used to manage liquidity and rebalance portfolios, while co‑investments were identified as a way to enhance returns and improve fee efficiency. The consensus was clear that private markets will continue to expand across wealth portfolios, but this growth must be supported by stronger liquidity solutions and operational efficiency.

Manager selection: Performance, governance, and innovation

Manager selection remains decisive. Panelists emphasized the importance of a proven track record, sector expertise, and alignment of interest, alongside the ability to innovate—particularly in developing structures that offer semi‑liquid access without compromising asset integrity. Operational due diligence and technology are becoming central to selection decisions, as investors demand greater transparency, robust reporting, and scalable platforms. Balancing stability with innovation is key: established managers offer reassurance and governance strength, while emerging platforms can provide differentiated access and future growth opportunities.

Clearstream’s role in enabling access

As allocations to private markets grow, so does operational complexity. Clearstream addresses these challenges by digitizing and automating private market fund access through solutions such as Vestima Digital. This platform enables straight-through processing for subscriptions and capital calls, investor-level transparency, and seamless integration with distributors and asset managers. By reducing manual workflows and providing scalable infrastructure, Clearstream helps clients overcome traditional barriers—complex onboarding, fragmented data, and liquidity management.

Clearstream is now a European leader in semi-liquid private market infrastructure, backed by:

• Over €340bn assets under custody in private market funds 
• More than a decade of expertise in private market infrastructure and operational excellence
• 7,500+ ISINs on Vestima reflecting rapid product expansion across ELTIF, evergreen, RAIF, credit, infrastructure, and multi-asset strategies
• Over 90% of private market assets and inflows in semi-liquid structures
• A uniquely strong wealth-distribution footprint
• Deep engagement with top-tier global GPs

Clearstream is uniquely positioned as the infrastructure backbone for Europe’s fast-growing semi-liquid private market ecosystem, ensuring that wealth managers can meet client demand efficiently and securely, while asset managers benefit from streamlined distribution and operational oversight. In a market where innovation and operational excellence are as important as investment performance, Clearstream provides the backbone for growth.

If you have any questions or would like to know more about our private market solutions, please contact us at private-markets@clearstream.com