A major wealth management theme in the past few years has been growing interest in non-listed investments, such as via private equity, credit, and venture capital. The French firm is taking its approach up a gear.

Paris-headquartered Rothschild & Co is building a private markets group within its wealth and asset management arm, highlighting how such investment continues as a hot area.

The firm said that this new team will create a “more coherent and comprehensive” private markets offering.

A major wealth management theme in the past few years has been the growing interest in non-listed investments, such as via private equity, credit, and venture capital.

The potential of such relatively illiquid investments to offer superior yields compared with listed stocks, or conventional bonds, has been a factor driving the space. Another force has been how post-GFC bank rules, such as the Basel Capital rules, have shifted capital towards funds and non-bank credit providers. Also, the size of the listed equity market, versus private markets, has contracted since the end of the dotcom bubble in 1999.

Rothschild & Co said its team will source investment opportunities in private equity, private debt, infrastructure and real estate, creating simplified access, as well as dedicated investment vehicles and discretionary mandates for private clients.

Jessica Sellam will lead the private markets group, and report to François Perol, managing partner, Rothschild & Co. Sellam, who joined Rothschild & Co’s wealth management division in 2006, previously led the private markets and business development teams for France, Belgium and Monaco.

“By co-ordinating and utilising the significant expertise across the wealth and asset management and merchant banking divisions, our clients will benefit from a more complete and accessible private markets offering,” Perol said.

A number of firms in the private markets space know that wealth managers are important sources of clients. For example, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, the investment firm, manages nearly $70 billion in private wealth assets (as of 31 December 2022) through its links with private wealth firms and a large network of financial advisors and RIAs. At Blackstone, which oversees $730.7 billion in assets, $166 billion is in the private wealth segment.