In this month’s roundup, Kelly Park Capital launched an alts onboarding platform, NewEdge placed structured note strategies in Envestnet unified managed accounts (UMAs), Goldman Sachs agreed to acquire NEOS Investments, Raymond James acquired Imperial Capital’s fixed-income sales and trading business, Fidelity expanded its institutional SMA lineup, HFR reported record hedge fund capital, VanEck partnered with Allocate, Cerulli projected private markets growth, State Street reported on July ETF flows, LPL launched building-block model portfolios, WTW and SEI expanded their defined-contribution collaboration, and iCapital published alternatives research.
Kelly Park Capital Launches PRISM 2.0 For Alts
Kelly Park Capital Private Funds launched PRISM 2.0, whose “5-in-1” onboarding allows advisors and clients to complete one subscription process before allocating capital across multiple alternative investment strategies. The firm said the approach reduces the need to complete separate subscription and anti-money-laundering processes for each fund, including repeated data entry, varying qualification requirements and multiple signature packets.
Development of the PRISM beta began in mid-2025, followed by an advisor pilot from January through April that gathered feedback from a limited group of participants. The firm said more than 100 users are now on PRISM 2.0, which uses AI to help organize capital-call information and answer advisors’ investment questions by drawing on Kelly Park’s proprietary diligence and nearly 25 years of historical private fund data.
Dean Rubino, CEO of Kelly Park Capital Private Funds, told WSR, “AI is used throughout PRISM, including in aspects of its design and coding. We also use AI to review and optimize system architecture, particularly around workflows and integrations. On a more practical level, AI has been a valuable tool for ensuring the aforementioned consistency across collateral materials and reporting.”
NewEdge Adds Structured Note Strategies To UMAs
NewEdge Capital Group expanded its partnership with Envestnet so advisors can manage two NewEdge structured note strategies alongside other investments in a UMA. NewEdge said the UMA structure is intended to make use of the strategies more scalable. The Structured Note Income Portfolio, or SNIP, and Structured Note Advisory Portfolio, or SNAP, were among the first structured note separately managed accounts (SMAs) available through Envestnet, according to NewEdge.
Introduced in 2021, SNIP and SNAP have more than $800 million in assets under management (AUM) and are available through several custodians and investment platforms, including Envestnet, Dynasty and SMArtX. NewEdge launched NewEdge Investment Solutions in 2023 to give third-party financial professionals and institutions access to strategies used by NewEdge Wealth. Four CFAs oversee $5 billion on the platform.
Michaelangelo Dooley, Structured Note Strategies Portfolio Manager at NewEdge, said, “Our financial advisors need simple solutions to meet the complex wealth management needs of their clients, and this is one way to streamline investment strategies. Research shows the adoption of SMAs and alternatives continues to be a focus for many firms, and UMAs enable their use in a more scalable manner.”
Goldman Sachs Agrees To Acquire NEOS Investments
Goldman Sachs agreed to acquire NEOS Investments for up to $2.25 billion in cash and equity, subject to performance and service commitments. NEOS managed $30 billion across 19 options-based income ETFs as of June 30, and the transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2027, subject to regulatory approval and other customary closing conditions.
After the transaction closes, NEOS Co-Founders and Managing Partners Troy Cates and Garrett Paolella are expected to join Goldman Sachs Asset Management as Partners, along with the full NEOS team. Goldman Sachs Global Banking & Markets advised Goldman Sachs, with Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz and Willkie Farr & Gallagher serving as legal counsel. Barclays is NEOS’ exclusive financial advisor, and Ropes & Gray is its legal counsel.
David Solomon, Chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs, said, “As investor demand for active ETFs grows, NEOS’ disciplined investment approach is highly complementary to our capabilities across buffer, managed outcome and income strategies. Together, we will give investors a diverse toolkit for different market environments. NEOS’ innovative ETF solutions and intuitive financial education programs have helped them build a strong market presence across a diverse investor base and this acquisition is an excellent strategic and cultural fit.”
Raymond James Acquires Imperial Capital Fixed-Income Business
Raymond James acquired Imperial Capital’s institutional fixed-income sales and trading business, adding more than 30 associates who specialize in secondary private and illiquid credit markets. The associates joined Raymond James offices in Los Angeles; New York; Houston; Red Bank, New Jersey; Stamford, Connecticut; and London, expanding the firm’s fixed-income platform capabilities for institutional clients in the U.S., U.K. and Europe.
The acquisition includes Imperial Capital’s Fixed Income Sales & Trading team and Fixed Income Research staff. Founded in 1997 by Randall Wooster and Jason Reese, Imperial Capital is an investment bank serving institutional investors and middle-market companies, with capabilities in sourcing, analyzing, trading and settling special situations and illiquid credit.
Horace Carter, President of Fixed Income Capital Markets at Raymond James, said, “The addition of these capabilities onto our existing platform results in new opportunities for clients to access a broader spectrum of securities across the issuer life cycle and varying levels of liquidity in complex markets. I’m thrilled to welcome the Fixed Income Sales & Trading team to Raymond James.”
Fidelity Expands Institutional SMA Lineup
Fidelity Investments expanded its institutional SMA lineup with six custom strategies and two model offerings for RIA and broker-dealer clients. Its Tax-Managed Enhanced Equity and Tax-Managed Fundamental Equity SMA lineups each added large-cap core, growth and value strategies that combine personalization and tax management with Fidelity’s quantitative and active management capabilities. The strategies are available to RIAs through Fidelity’s Wealthscape-integrated SMA platform.
Fidelity also introduced Fidelity Institutional Blue Chip Growth Focused and Fidelity Institutional Small Growth Focused model SMAs that can be incorporated into UMAs. As of June 30, the Fidelity Institutional Custom SMA lineup included 50 off-the-shelf strategies, in addition to blends. Fidelity also offers eight active equity, five factor and two index model SMAs through Fidelity Managed Account Xchange and select third-party platforms, according to the firm.
Amanda Robinson, Head of Wealth Advisory Managed Solutions Distribution at Fidelity Investments, said, “Demand for a personalized investing experience continues to grow, particularly among ultra-high-net-worth investors, a population that has grown by more than 40% in the past decade. We’ve consistently expanded the range of investment capabilities available to advisors serving those who are looking for a more bespoke experience.”
HFR Reports Record Hedge Fund Capital Growth
Global hedge fund industry capital increased by $409.3 billion during the second quarter of 2026 to a record $5.6 trillion, according to HFR’s Global Hedge Fund Industry Report. It was the industry’s largest quarterly asset increase and its 15th consecutive quarterly gain. The increase included record quarterly performance gains of $364 billion and estimated net asset inflows of $45.2 billion.
The HFRI Fund Weighted Composite Index gained 7.5% in the first half, its strongest first-half performance since 2021. The HFRI Equity Hedge Index rose 9.6%, the HFRI Event-Driven Index advanced 7.4%, the HFRI Macro Index returned 6.1% and the HFRI Relative Value Index added 3.7%. Equity Hedge assets led second-quarter strategy growth, increasing by $173 billion to $1.76 trillion, including estimated net inflows of $9.8 billion.
Kenneth J. Heinz, President of HFR, said, “The dominant trends driving performance and capital growth continue to accelerate into 2H26, alongside evolving geopolitical risks and the potential for further disruptions. While these volatile drivers are difficult to project over an extended period, it is clear that investors are increasingly allocating to hedge funds not only to navigate market micro-cycles but also to reduce overall portfolio volatility and capitalize on rapidly shifting opportunities.”
VanEck Partners With Allocate On Private Markets
VanEck partnered with Allocate to use Allocate’s technology and operational infrastructure to offer private market strategies to financial advisors, RIAs and their clients. The firms said Allocate’s infrastructure enables VanEck to introduce wealth-focused private market offerings in weeks rather than the months typical of conventional launches, while VanEck retains control of its strategies, products and investor relationships throughout the launch process.
Allocate’s infrastructure covers advisor and investor onboarding, subscription processing, compliance workflows, capital calls, reporting and ongoing investor servicing. The company connects asset managers with more than 375 wealth advisory firms and RIAs and supports more than $5 billion in platform assets. VanEck and Allocate said the agreement begins a broader relationship in which they expect to explore additional private market offerings for wealth management.
Jan van Eck, CEO of VanEck, said, “Private markets represent one of the most significant opportunities for investors, but they demand a different approach than traditional institutional distribution. Allocate’s technology enabled us to bring our first wealth-focused private markets offering within a matter of weeks. Their solution also integrates with our largest advisory firm clients which is a ‘must have’ these days.”
Cerulli Projects $2 Trillion In Advisor-Intermediated Private Markets Growth
U.S. financial advisors’ holdings of less-than-fully-liquid private capital products are expected to increase by $2 trillion over the next five years, according to “The Cerulli Report—U.S. Private Markets 2026.” Advisors currently allocate an estimated $2.2 trillion to such investments. Cerulli said the continued development of interval funds, adoption of other less-than-fully-liquid products and streamlined access through alternative-asset allocation models support the projection.
Two-thirds of asset managers cited advisors’ need to demonstrate value to clients as a factor driving private markets adoption, while more than half cited demand for income-producing investments, Cerulli said. As distribution expands through models, multi-asset vehicles and defined-contribution plans, the research firm expects partnerships among asset managers, technology platforms, TAMPs, trust companies and recordkeepers to become increasingly important across retail channels.
Daniil Shapiro, Director at Cerulli Associates, said, “Traditional asset managers are seeking differentiated capabilities that can enhance their product offerings and support more competitive value propositions. At the same time, private capital managers often lack the distribution scale and brand recognition required to penetrate retail channels, particularly beyond the ultra-high-net-worth segment and into the broader affluent market. Working together, these firms can deliver solutions to retail investors that neither could provide as effectively on their own.”
State Street Reports $189 Billion In July ETF Flows
U.S.-listed ETFs gathered $189 billion in July, lifting year-to-date inflows to $1.2 trillion and trailing 12-month inflows to $2 trillion, according to State Street Investment Management. More than 70% of the month’s inflows went to equities, which State Street said indicated risk-on positioning even as macroeconomic risks and concerns about concentrated AI exposure weighed on global stock and bond returns.
U.S. equity ETFs led July inflows with $92 billion, while non-U.S. equity ETFs attracted $35 billion, including $8 billion for single-country funds. Sector ETFs set a monthly record with $25 billion of inflows, including $19 billion for technology funds. State Street also found that inflows into ETF groups above the midpoint of its risk-on measure exceeded those below it by $40 billion.
Bond ETFs attracted $52 billion in July, bringing year-to-date inflows to $352 billion and putting them on pace to exceed the $433 billion annual record set in 2025, State Street said. The firm projected full-year bond ETF inflows could exceed $600 billion. Inflation-linked bond ETFs gathered $1.4 billion during the month, short-term government bond ETFs added $9 billion and broad commodity ETFs took in $1.3 billion.
LPL Research Launches Building-Block Model Portfolios
LPL Research launched 17 Building Block Model Portfolios, expanding its model portfolio platform to more than 70 offerings. The new single-asset mutual fund, ETF and SMA strategies include equities, fixed income and alternatives. Advisors can use the models independently or combine them within UMAs to construct portfolios around clients’ investment objectives and risk preferences, according to LPL Financial.
The launch followed LPL Research’s model portfolio platform surpassing $100 billion in AUM as of February. LPL said the modular approach gives advisors greater control over portfolio construction while providing the ongoing oversight and research of its investment team. The firm said the asset milestone underscores the platform’s growth and increasing demand for model-based portfolio management across advisory practices.
Aneri Jambusaria, Chief Wealth Officer at LPL, said, “Surpassing $100 billion in model portfolio assets reflects the strength of our investment platform, the performance of our strategies and the trust advisors place in our team. When we pursue strong investment outcomes, our community is better positioned to help clients pursue their financial goals.”
WTW And SEI Expand Private Markets Collaboration
WTW Investments and SEI expanded their relationship to develop private markets solutions for 401(k) plans and the broader defined-contribution market. Building on WTW’s experience incorporating private markets into defined-contribution solutions since 2018, the firms are combining WTW’s investment research and portfolio implementation capabilities with the trust, operational and administrative services that SEI Trust Company provides for collective investment trusts (CITs).
WTW will provide investment and operational due diligence and research support for private market strategies used in retirement-focused CIT and evergreen solutions. It also selected SEI Trust Company to support the delivery of certain WTW retirement solutions through CITs. The firms are designing additional products and structures intended to address the operational, governance, liquidity and risk-management requirements of defined-contribution plans over time and at scale.
Christy Loop, Head of U.S. Wealth and Strategic Initiatives at WTW, said, “A key challenge for defined contribution plans is ensuring sponsors have the right wrapper, structure and terms to integrate diversifying exposures like private credit. By combining our strengths with SEI’s expertise in designing fit for purpose vehicles for DC plans, we can expand participant access to private markets, enhancing diversification and providing differentiated sources of return to support long-term wealth accumulation.”
iCapital Survey Tracks Advisor Alternatives Demand
According to iCapital’s 2026 Global Advisor Survey, “The Next Phase of Alternatives Growth,” 89% of advisors plan to maintain or increase their alts allocations over the next 12 months. The survey found that 39% expect to increase allocations, compared with 14% in the prior year, as wealth management firms focus increasingly on the infrastructure required to implement alternatives consistently across client portfolios.
It also found that 84% of advisors said client interest in alternatives had remained about the same or increased during the prior two years, while 51% called risk and performance analytics tools critical. A third-party research firm fielded the survey during the first half of 2026, gathering responses from 870 financial professionals in 15 countries across Asia-Pacific, Europe, the Middle East and the U.S.
Gary Gallagher, President of iCapital, said, “As alternatives become more integrated into client portfolios, advisors are increasingly looking for the tools, insights, and support needed to evaluate, implement, and manage these investments effectively.” He added that the survey’s findings “suggest the conversation is shifting beyond access and education toward portfolio construction, risk assessment, reporting, and the capabilities needed to deliver alternatives across a broader range of clients.”
Wealth Solutions Report can be reached at info@wealthsolutionsreport.com.
