BT strikes educational partnership with Preqin

BT has formed a strategic educational partnership with Preqin to provide advisers with comprehensive, contemporary research and resources to enhance their understanding of the private markets sector.

Having experienced growing popularity in recent years, assets under management (AUM) in private markets have tripled in Australia over the past decade, landing just short of $140 billion as of December 2023.

According to BT, this trend has been noted globally, attributing it to structural shifts in global capital markets, including fewer listed companies, fewer IPOs, and stricter post-GFC regulations, leading to more private lenders entering the market.

Despite this growth, and the subsequent product innovations, BT said that comprehensive market research remains scarce and the new partnership is a direct response to advisers’ demand for “increased transparency and research on a rapidly growing, but traditionally opaque, sector”.

Available on BT Academy, the educational content, which has been curated by Preqin’s expert analysts and researchers, covers a wide variety of topics including private equity, private debt, infrastructure, property, and natural resources. Each learning module also includes an assessment to test advisers’ knowledge and allow them to earn continuing professional development (CPD) points.

BT’s head of investment product solutions, Stuart Cadzow, said that while private markets have traditionally been considered solely for institutional asset owners, the environment has shifted and new products on the market are increasingly being offered to private wealth investors as well.

“Once considered ‘alternatives’, we can see a time – as portfolios evolve – when private debt will be an extension of fixed income, real assets as an extension of listed property and infrastructure, and private equity as an extension of shares,” Cadzow said.

“We’re seeing an increasing demand for education from advisers, in line with growing client interest: the opportunities, risks and product structures are generally not as well understood as with listed assets.

“It’s crucial that advisers understand the role these sub-asset classes play in their clients’ portfolios, including product features which can impact performance, liquidity, and fees.”

Speaking on the partnership, Cadzow said working with Preqin will allow BT to fulfil its commitment to advisers to provide them with essential educational content and help them better serve their clients.

“As BT has the largest number of adviser relationships in the Australian market, we have the necessary reach to make an impact, and improve access to information that advisers need,” he said.

“We identified a clear education gap in the private markets space, and so have sought to empower advisers with market-leading research and education, so they can help clients make better strategic investment decisions.

“Our partnership with Preqin is the first step in BT’s commitment to supporting advisers with private market education and product access. BT sees the sector as an increasingly relevant part of clients’ portfolio construction going forward.”

Preqin’s head of research insights, Cameron Joyce, said with the private market expected to continue to grow, the partnership with BT will help advisers better understand these key assets.

“The next chapter in the evolving growth story of private markets will be at the individual level, with high-net-worth investors expected to increase their allocations over the next 10 years, as technology and product innovation enable greater accessibility,” Joyce said.

“More than 200,000 institutional and private wealth professionals globally leverage Preqin’s insights. We’re delighted to be able to share these insights with advisers who are using BT’s platforms.”