iCapital strengthens Apac presence as demand for alternatives surges among wealthy investors

[SINGAPORE] Temasek-backed global fintech firm iCapital, a platform that streamlines the complex, manual processes traditionally required to access private markets, is looking to expand its Asia headcount, it said on Wednesday (Jun 10).

This comes as demand among high-net-worth investors in Singapore and the broader region accelerates rapidly.

The firm’s Asia Advisor Survey 2025 found that 38 per cent of advisers in Singapore and Hong Kong reported a rise in client interest in alternatives – a figure that climbs to 100 per cent among firms managing more than US$3 billion.

Globally, iCapital noted that private wealth clients are looking to increase alternatives allocation from US$4 trillion in 2022 to US$13 trillion by 2032.

In an exclusive interview with The Business Times, Jeff McGoey, chief operating officer (COO) at iCapital, noted that the biggest trend seen recently in Singapore and the broader Asia-Pacific region is a shift from whether one should get into alternatives to how one should go about doing it.

To capture this surging demand, iCapital has been aggressively expanding its physical footprint. It has also recently upgraded to larger office spaces in both Hong Kong and Singapore to accommodate its growing operations.

This geographic expansion has been matched by a localised hiring boom, with iCapital’s regional headcount now surpassing 60 professionals across client servicing, operations and technology.

This shift comes at a critical time for the industry as broader private markets navigate short-term liquidity pressures, triggering heightened redemptions in private markets well beyond the private credit sector.

In Q2 2026, Blackstone joined other asset managers in capping withdrawals from its flagship private credit fund after redemption requests reached around 10 per cent of shares outstanding – double the fund’s standard limit.

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Partners Group similarly triggered its 5 per cent quarterly redemption limit on its evergreen private equity fund after withdrawal requests surged to around 9.8 per cent of net asset value in the same period.  

Education is key

McGoey said these market hurdles underscore the vital need for adviser and client education – a core challenge iCapital aims to address.

“When somebody says semi-liquid, they only hear the second part sometimes,” McGoey noted. “Unlike traditional assets like stocks and bonds, there is much more complexity to how one must invest and redeem out of these products, including paperwork and lengthy offering materials.”

He observed a structural shift in product preferences. Investors are moving away from traditional private equity where capital is locked up for a decade, towards “evergreen” products that offer periodic liquidity, such as the ability to redeem up to 5 per cent of their assets every quarter.

“Education underpins everything that we do,” McGoey said, emphasising that iCapital’s goal is to continue to educate investors on the right terminology, what they are getting into, and why holding these investments over the long run is ultimately the right strategy.

Democratising private markets

Beyond education, iCapital aims to democratise and automate the investment industry by lowering investment minimums and streamlining operational inefficiencies.

The firm sees a long runway in the private wealth space as regional investors and family offices mature. Having moved beyond simple property and public equity portfolios, many are now increasing allocations to alternatives.

Yet, a significant number continue to manage these complex private market assets through spreadsheets and fragmented processes.

McGoey noted that operational pain points remain pervasive for family offices in the region, particularly regarding paperwork, data reporting, portfolio aggregation and navigating the complex drawdown structures inherent to private assets.

To accelerate these operational fixes, iCapital partnered Anthropic in April to integrate its artificial intelligence model, Claude, into its core processes. Initial applications focused on workflows targeted at advisers and client enablement as well as product provider engagement.

“As a fintech company that is always trying to figure out new and innovative ways to help our clients, AI fits right in the middle of that,” McGoey said.

He explained that the firm’s developers use the tool to assist with coding and driving development efficiencies to scale the platform’s core infrastructure.

Specifically in Asia, where unique workflows such as localised subscription processing and bespoke production reporting exist between iCapital and fund managers, McGoey said AI can handle significant data scraping and automate reports.

Ultimately, when navigating volatile markets, he emphasised that diversification remains paramount to building a resilient, balanced portfolio. This ensures that when one particular investment sees headwinds due to geopolitical risks, another asset class can provide a stabilising counter-effect.

“If you follow the investments over time, and if you maintain a well-diversified allocation into private markets, you will be very happy with the results that come with that,” McGoey noted. “Over time, we remain convinced that the trend is always going to be upwards over a long-term time horizon.”