Clearstream is sharpening its focus on private-market funds and expanding its post-trade infrastructure to support increasing institutional demand across Europe. The Luxembourg Times reports that the company now holds around €300 billion in custody for alternative assets, up from virtually nothing eleven years ago, when it acquired Citco Global Securities Services. The figure was shared by Neil Wise, chief commercial officer and executive board member at Clearstream Fund Services, in an interview with the news outlet ahead of Clearstream’s annual conference.
The rapid growth in alternative assets reflects a broader industry shift. Asset managers and distributors are venturing beyond traditional funds, seeking industrial-scale solutions for private-market investments that have long relied on manual or fragmented processes. Clearstream’s strategy centres on bringing the same level of standardisation and operational efficiency to alternatives that it already applies to UCITS and other regulated fund structures, effectively turning its fund services platform into a bridge between investors, managers, and distributors.
Connecting infrastructure and distribution
That bridge is being reinforced through new partnerships. A collaboration with BlackRock, for instance, will link Clearstream’s network of more than 300 distribution partners to BlackRock’s private-market strategies. According to Clearstream, this effort forms part of a wider push to streamline order routing, settlement, and servicing for alternative vehicles via its expanding digital infrastructure.
