Launch of Ardian's US Access Fund in the United States
Ardian, a global private investment firm managing $180 billion in assets, has launched Ardian Access, a private equity evergreen investment vehicle designed to provide accredited US investors and other professional investors with flexible access to a diversified portfolio of private assets globally.
The fund, which is still subject to regulatory approvals and consultations with relevant employee representative bodies, aims to democratize access to private equity by offering a scalable, diversified, and professionally managed investment solution. Ardian Access leverages the firm's market leadership in secondaries, co-investments, and primaries, with a clear focus on risk mitigation and long-term value creation.
Ardian's extensive experience managing nearly $110 billion across secondary markets, primary funds, and direct co-investments forms the background of Ardian Access. The fund utilizes Ardian's established secondaries and co-investment platforms, which are supported by a proprietary database covering over 650 general partners, 1,600 funds, and 10,000 portfolio companies. This comprehensive database enables Ardian to identify and execute high-quality deals with well-vetted sponsors and assets, following a "buy what we know" investment approach.
The investment strategy of Ardian Access centers on global diversification across sectors and company sizes, emphasizing exposure to secondary market opportunities and direct co-investments overseen by high-quality general partners. The fund is managed by Ardian’s global teams of over 125 professionals located in 20 offices worldwide, who maintain strong partnerships with general partners, limited partners, and portfolio company management teams to source and manage investments effectively.
Ardian Access is an evergreen fund, allowing for immediate capital deployment from day one to maximize compounding and reduce cash drag. The vehicle is designed to mitigate common obstacles in private market investing, such as the J-curve effect, and aims to appeal to a broader variety of accredited investors with a minimum investment of $25,000.
Over the last four years, Ardian's secondaries team has negotiated more than $40bn in transactions, demonstrating the firm's strength in the private equity market. Ardian's co-investment arm has supported over 140 portfolio businesses alongside top sponsors. The fund will use Ardian's secondary and co-investment platforms, which collectively manage more than $104bn.
Ardian Access LLC, created to serve Ardian's core competencies to a broader audience, including private wealth investors, will provide a professionally managed solution that brings to bear even more of Ardian's differentiated expertise. The business expansion into the private wealth market represents a key milestone for Ardian, as it seeks to make its traditionally institutional-only private market strategies accessible to a broader range of private investors.
The launch of Ardian Access SICAV-RAIF, a Luxembourg-based evergreen fund, marks Ardian's continued growth into the private wealth market. The business will launch Ardian Access SICAV-RAIF to accommodate growing global demand, following the US debut of Ardian Access. Ardian Access provides flexible and diverse access to Ardian's secondary, primary, and direct co-investment strategies, helping clients to fill the gaps in their portfolios with broad, global private markets exposure.
Mark Benedetti, Executive President at Ardian, stated that Ardian Access represents the continued expansion of the firm's Private Wealth Solutions team. The business expansion into the private wealth market was formerly controlled by institutional capital and ultra-high-net-worth individuals, but with Ardian Access, accredited investors now have the opportunity to participate in this exclusive market.
[1] Ardian Press Release: [Link to Press Release] [2] iCapital Press Release: [Link to Press Release] [3] Ardian Access Investor Presentation: [Link to Investor Presentation]
[1] The launch of Ardian Access, an evergreen fund, aims to provide a professionally managed solution that leverages the firm's market leadership in private equity, secondaries, co-investments, and primaries, democratizing access to private assets in global finance through private markets.
[2] Ardian Access utilizes its established platforms in secondary markets and co-investments, supported by a comprehensive database covering numerous general partners, funds, and portfolio companies, to further private equity investing by offering flexible access to a diversified portfolio of private assets for accredited investors and other professional investors.
[3] As part of its business expansion, Ardian Access LLC will use AI and data-driven insights to cater to private wealth investors, bring more of its differentiated expertise to a broader audience, and make traditionally institutional-only private market strategies accessible to a wider range of private investors, driving growth in the private wealth market and the investing industry as a whole.
