Allocator's Perspective - July 2025

Summary

Private equity secondaries are reshaping access to private markets, offering investors liquidity, diversification, and stability that traditional “primary” investments lack. In this episode of Money Matters, Chad Larson and Dan Cohen from Coller Capital explore how this once-niche $165B market now provides institutional-level advantages to private wealth clients through disciplined, diversified strategies.

Highlights

• Secondaries involve purchasing existing private equity stakes, offering liquidity to early sellers.
• The global market has expanded from under $1B in 1990 to over $165B today.
• Growth is driven by longer private company lifespans and rising liquidity needs.
• Coller Capital manages $40B across 11 offices with a focus on diversification and capital preservation.
• Less than 2% of secondary funds have failed to return capital over two decades.
• MLD Wealth’s partnership with Coller Capital opens institutional-grade access to private investors.
  

Key Insights

1. Liquidity and Flexibility: Secondaries provide a critical mechanism for investors seeking earlier exits from traditionally illiquid private markets.
2. Risk-Adjusted Opportunity: Through discounted entry and diversification, secondaries reduce downside exposure while maintaining strong return potential.
3. Democratisation of Alternatives: Partnerships like MLD Wealth and Coller Capital are making high-quality private equity opportunities available to individual investors for the first time.
   

Conclusion

Private equity secondaries are becoming a cornerstone of modern portfolio construction—combining liquidity, risk management, and institutional-grade access to private markets in a way that empowers both wealth advisors and private investors.

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