The Securities and Exchange Commission also played a part late last year when the US regulator revisited the definition of an accredited investor and who is eligible to participate in private capital markets.

There has generally been more resistance to opening up private markets for UK investors mainly on FCA concerns that investors’ expectations - when the steer is more towards the retail end - won’t match the liquidity restrictions that private markets present.

Titanbay’s UK entry will give smaller investors access to eight to 12 hand-picked private equity funds. The group said that it is aiming to bring down the barriers that have traditionally ruled these investors out, such as high minimum-investment stakes and complicated investment processes.

“Qualified investors can access the same top-tier private equity funds as the largest institutional investors with low investment minimums and low fees,” the firm said, giving them complete control and flexibility over where and how much to invest.

The group told WeathBriefing that the main competition will come from private banks offering similar access, but where it hopes to differentiate is by having a platform developed by experts in the private equity space.

The London-based team will be headed by Thomas Eskebaek, previously at Bain & Company and Eight Roads. The COO is Laura Heely, who moved into technology strategy after starting her career in investment advisory at JP Morgan. Former managing director at Capital Group, Adam Harrison, will head investor relations.

Fund selection is led by the group’s Investment Advisory Board, which includes Thomas Schleicher, CIO of KIRKBI, the Kirk Kristiansen family’s private holding and investment company, and Oliver Burgel, former chief executive of Barings Europe.

“Investing well in private equity requires access, diversification and discipline,” CEO Eskebaek said. “We estimate that the cost to smaller institutional investors such as pension funds, trusts, charities, institutions and family offices of being effectively excluded from strategically investing in private equity runs into hundreds of billions of dollars per year."