Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) today announced that Wells Fargo Investment Institute, Inc., (WFII) has entered into an agreement to sell its Global Alternative Investments (GAI) Feeder Fund Platform to iCapital Network1. In addition, Wells Fargo today announced that it is making a strategic investment in iCapital under the terms of iCapital’s latest fundraising round.
“We are pleased to partner with iCapital to deliver alternative investments to enhance the experience for our advisors and clients,” said Darrell Cronk, president of WFII. “This transaction will allow us to continue to provide innovative alternative investment solutions to our clients as well as upgrade the overall platform and launch new offerings.”
The Wells Fargo GAI Feeder Fund Platform provides brokerage and wealth management clients the ability to invest in a full suite of alternative solutions, including private equity, private debt, hedge funds, private real estate, and direct private investments across approximately 70 investment vehicles. Since 2006, GAI has offered investment options through feeder funds that invest in external funds or portfolio companies.
With the increased adoption of alternative investments and to best serve clients, WFII decided to partner with iCapital to ensure a best-in-class solution. Wells Fargo will continue to provide clients with its existing investment services, such as upfront and ongoing investment due diligence, product selection, investment monitoring, platform management, product support, and education, while the iCapital platform will provide investors with enhanced technology and efficiency.
As part of the transaction, iCapital will offer employment to a team of Wells Fargo employees who currently support operations for the GAI Feeder Fund Platform. The transitioning team will continue to support the fund portfolio to ensure continuity of service.
The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close during the second half of 2020. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
About the Wells Fargo Investment Institute
Global Alternative Investments (“GAI”) is a division of Wells Fargo Investment Institute, Inc. (“WFII”). WFII is a registered investment advisor and wholly owned subsidiary of Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., a bank affiliate of Wells Fargo & Company, providing investment research, strategy, manager research, and thought leadership within the Wealth & Investment Management division, with the goal of supplying world-class advice to the company’s financial and wealth advisors.
Wells Fargo Wealth & Investment Management, a division within the Wells Fargo & Company enterprise, provides financial products and services through bank and brokerage affiliates of Wells Fargo & Company.
About Wells Fargo
Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) is a diversified, community-based financial services company with $1.98 trillion in assets. Wells Fargo’s vision is to satisfy our customers’ financial needs and help them succeed financially. Founded in 1852 and headquartered in San Francisco, Wells Fargo provides banking, investment and mortgage products and services, as well as consumer and commercial finance, through 7,400 locations, more than 13,000 ATMs, the internet (wellsfargo.com) and mobile banking, and has offices in 31 countries and territories to support customers who conduct business in the global economy. With approximately 263,000 team members, Wells Fargo serves one in three households in the United States. Wells Fargo & Company was ranked No. 30 on Fortune’s 2020 rankings of America’s largest corporations. News, insights and perspectives from Wells Fargo are also available at Wells Fargo Stories.
Additional information may be found at www.wellsfargo.com | Twitter: @WellsFargo.
1 Institutional Capital Network, Inc. (herein “iCapital Network” or “iCapital”)
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