Morgan Stanley Wealth Management has opened up its private markets fund to a wider pool of investors, as asset managers intensify their push into retail wealth channels.
Morgan Stanley’s wealth management arm, which oversees $300bn (£227bn) in alternative assets, has restructured the $1bn Morgan Stanley Private Markets and Alternatives Fund (PMAX) to allow greater investor access, including retail.
PMAX originally required investors to be accredited investors, however, it has now been registered as PMAX – Balanced, removing that requirement.
Alongside this, the asset manager has lowered the minimum investment threshold to an initial commitment of $10,000 and introduced daily subscriptions, broadening access to more investors.
The PMAX fund provides exposure to private equity, private credit, real estate and infrastructure through a simplified, single-ticket evergreen structure.
Read more: Morgan Stanley expands wealth push with private credit interval fund
The expansion comes as retail-focused private credit funds have faced elevated redemption requests over the past two quarters, driven by concerns over lending standards in private credit and growing fears that AI could undermine the software sector, an area to which the asset class has significant exposure.
Morgan Stanley said the expansion comes as it expects global alternatives assets under management to exceed $30tn by 2030, up from less than $10tn a decade ago.
“By expanding the platform and making it easier to invest, we are giving clients and advisors more ways to build diversified portfolios aligned with their investment objectives,” said Alison Nest, head of investment solutions products.