Morgan Stanley IM Extends Private Equity Access to Retail

Morgan Stanley Investment Management (MSIM) announced the launch of the North Haven Private Assets Fund (NHPAF), an SEC-registered evergreen investment fund designed to offer select investors the opportunity to obtain institutional-quality private equity exposure primarily through co-investments and secondaries in the lower middle market. This is MSIM’s first evergreen private equity offering and follows the introduction of retail private credit and real assets strategies over the last five years.

Neha Champaneria Markle, the Head of Morgan Stanley Private Equity Solutions, said: “We are pleased to facilitate access to both secondaries and co-investments in privately held companies to a wider audience of potential investors through a user-friendly evergreen structure. We believe that the lower middle market offers a broad opportunity set characterized by lower entry valuations, greater potential for organic and M&A-driven growth, and more liquidity options compared to the large cap segment. We think this thematic emphasis, along with our demonstrated history of experience, and disciplined and careful manager diversification, will enable us to offer the potential for differentiated performance and downside risk protection.”

NHPAF is managed by Morgan Stanley Private Equity Solutions, MSIM’s multi-manager private equity solutions platform, which has a 25-year track record and a longstanding network of relationships with GPs. Combined with the broader resources of Morgan Stanley, the Fund is expected to benefit from the potential for robust deal flow as well as meaningful diligence advantages.

David N. Miller, Global Head of Private Credit & Equity, said: “Increased democratization of alternatives provides individuals access to what had been traditionally institutional asset classes. MSIM’s $240 billion alternatives business has largely been built organically over four decades. We are pleased to expand our suite of private wealth-oriented private markets funds to include private equity in a structure that provides diversified exposure across sectors, geographies, and underlying managers. The Private Equity Solutions team has a long history in private equity investing and, we believe, a compelling investment playbook that is further distinguished by the top-tier global resources of Morgan Stanley.”