Hamilton Lane and Republic have formed a collaboration to offer retail investors access to private market investments via digital blockchain-based solutions. The effort seeks to democratize access to a $13 trillion global market by offering low investment minimums and improved liquidity relative to conventional private market funds. The initial offering is anticipated to launch in the first half of 2025. 

Hamilton Lane, which manages over $947 billion in assets, stated that the endeavor is motivated by data indicating that private market funds have outperformed public market counterparts in 19 of the past 20 years. 

“The historic performance and diversification benefits of the private markets are real,” said Victor Jung, head of digital assets at Hamilton Lane, noting that globally over 140,000 private companies generate annual revenues exceeding $100 million, compared to approximately 19,000 public companies in the same revenue bracket. 

The initiative continues Hamilton Lane’s 2024 endeavor to provide evergreen infrastructure funds to accredited and high-net-worth investors. Last year, the firm launched its largest secondary fund on the Securitize platform and invested in Daphne Technologies, a platform that enables the distribution of alternative assets and digitizes the fundraising process.    

Republic, based in New York, runs retail-focused investment platforms as well as an enterprise digital advisory arm. Its investors include Valor Equity Partners, Galaxy Interactive, and AngelList. The company stated that it has developed a community of approximately three million members in 150 countries and facilitated over $3 billion in investments through its different platforms.