BlackRock completes Preqin acquisition
BlackRock has completed its £2.55bn acquisition of private markets data provider Preqin, which it said will strengthen its ability to serve clients’ whole portfolios.
The world’s largest asset manager highlighted the rapid growth of private markets, citing Preqin data that forecasts alternative assets to reach $30tn (£23.6tn) by the end of the decade.
It said that a lack of data transparency has limited investors’ allocations to these markets and the Preqin acquisition will help address this need.
The deal was first announced last July, with BlackRock highlighting the important role that data plays in supporting private markets investing.
Private markets data is estimated to be an $8bn total addressable market and growing 12 per cent per year, reaching $18bn by 2030, according to BlackRock.
Preqin will remain available as a standalone solution, while joint customers will benefit from product integrations, such as access to Preqin benchmarks within BlackRock’s in-house technology platform Aladdin.
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Over time, BlackRock will integrate Preqin’s proprietary data and research tools with Aladdin and eFront.
This unification of data, research, and investment processes will transform private markets investing across fundraising, deal sourcing, portfolio management, accounting, and performance reporting, BlackRock said.
“BlackRock is a perpetual reinvention machine, evolving continuously to stay ahead of our clients’ rapidly changing needs,” said Rob Goldstein, BlackRock’s chief operating officer.
“Today clients are seeking a ‘common language’ for investing that requires better data to drive investment decisions, manage risk, and construct portfolios. With Preqin, a part of BlackRock, we will seek to meet this need, accelerating clients’ ability to allocate to the growth of private markets and furthering our aspirations to deliver greater value across their whole portfolios.”
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Mark O’Hare, founder of Preqin, said: “For decades, investors in private markets have lacked the robust data they need to make fully informed decisions and incorporate private assets into their portfolios at scale. By marrying Preqin with BlackRock’s technology offering, we are even better placed to tackle this challenge and help clients build more diverse, resilient portfolios by delivering the transparency and insights they seek.”
Following the transaction, O’Hare has joined BlackRock as a vice chair.
Preqin has been operational for 20 years, providing data solutions in private markets with global coverage of 190,000 funds, 60,000 fund managers and 30,000 private markets investors.
