Private markets investment firm Hamilton Lane has partnered with digital securities exchange ADDX to tokenize a class of shares issued by Hamilton Lane Global Private Assets (GPA) Fund, to enable access to the private markets for a broader set of investors in Asia.
The partnership marks the first time Hamilton Lane has tokenized a fund, hoping it will broaden the appeal of the appeal of the asset class to investors.
Hamilton Lane’s GPA Fund will be accessible to ADDX investors at a minimum ticket size of $10,000, compared to the minimum of $125,000 or more for investors who subscribe via traditional, non-tokenized distribution channels.
ADDX is Asia’s largest private market exchange. Its individual accredited investors come from 39 countries spanning Asia Pacific, Europe and the Americas (except the US). More than half of these investors are from Asia. The platform automates manual processes in the issuance, custody and distribution of private market products, through the use of blockchain and smart contract technology.
Launched in May 2019, the GPA Fund has returned 16.11 percent (net) annualized since inception and has assets of more than $1.845 billion as of 31 January 2022.
Underlying assets in the open-ended fund are composed primarily of direct equity and secondary investments, along with direct credit. To date, the fund has invested in assets across nine industries, with about half of its deals within the information technology and industrials sectors. The remaining exposure consists of investments across a variety of sectors, including healthcare, energy and communications.
Hamilton Lane vice chairman and head of international, Juan Delgado-Moreira, said: “Hamilton Lane is dedicated to providing access to the private markets for a broader set of investors, and to doing so without some of the headaches that have historically been challenging for smaller investors. We seek to partner with firms that deliver transformative technology designed to drive our industry forward, and are excited to offer our investors access to GPA through this new platform.”
ADDX chief executive Oi-Yee Choo added: “Many investors don’t realize that the private markets are much larger than the public markets. Globally, more than 90 percent of companies with an annual turnover of $100 million or more are private. For any investor, leaving private equity out of your portfolio essentially means turning one’s back on the vast majority of investment opportunities in the market. At a time of unprecedented volatility and declining returns in the public markets, diversification into the private markets is more important than ever.”
