Key Takeaways
- • Goldman Sachs and T. Rowe Price plan to begin offering alternative investments such as private credit and private equity to wealthy clients by the end of 2025, with retirement-account products following in 2026, according to executives who spoke to Reuters.
- • The push follows a Trump executive order broadening 401(k) access to alternatives, a channel the companies say could reach about $9 trillion in 401(k) assets.
- • Goldman will take a stake of up to $1 billion in T. Rowe Price, which manages $1.6 trillion, roughly $1 trillion of it retirement-related.
- • T. Rowe CEO Rob Sharps expects all product lines to be in market by mid-2026 and sees alternatives reaching 10% to 20% of retirement assets over the long term.
- • Products will cap alternative allocations, with target-date funds holding a small alternative sleeve that shrinks as retirement approaches, and analysts flag liquidity and pricing transparency as key risks.
Summary
Goldman Sachs and asset manager T. Rowe Price plan to begin offering new alternative investments to wealthy clients by the end of 2025, with alternative investments for retirement accounts to follow next year, their executives told Reuters. The announcement comes weeks after the two firms struck a partnership in which Goldman will become a shareholder in T. Rowe Price, taking a stake of up to $1 billion. The companies will partner to offer products to retail investors.
The initiative follows an executive order by President Donald Trump that broadened access to alternative assets such as private credit and private equity within 401(k) retirement accounts. According to Reuters, the change could give private asset managers access to about $9 trillion in 401(k) assets. T. Rowe Price manages $1.6 trillion, of which around $1 trillion is retirement-related. T. Rowe CEO Rob Sharps said it is reasonable to expect that all of the different products could be in market by mid-2026.
The product set will be tailored by client type. Target-date funds, which are popular with investors, will hold a small portion in alternative assets with the remainder in public and liquid investments, and the alternative share may decline as the retirement date approaches. Separate alternative portfolios aimed at wealthy clients will mix private credit, private equity, or funds combining private equity and stocks. Goldman's head of wealth and asset management, Marc Nachmann, said the goal is eventually to open the products to everyone, though he acknowledged it is early days, with alternatives today mainly held by large institutions, endowments and high-net-worth individuals.
Analysts have pointed to risks including limited liquidity and transparent pricing. Sharps said newer structures can provide some liquidity and daily pricing to give individual investors more comfort. The products will impose limits on the share of portfolios that can go into alternatives, and managers will include alternatives in funds with retirement dates decades away in pursuit of higher returns. Sharps projected that alternatives could eventually reach 10% to 20% of total retirement assets over the long term.
The relationship dates back further than the recent deal. Sharps and Goldman President John Waldron began discussing the convergence of public and private markets and the growth of private assets about a year ago, and substantive deal talks began in early summer 2025, Sharps said.
The initiative follows an executive order by President Donald Trump that broadened access to alternative assets such as private credit and private equity within 401(k) retirement accounts. According to Reuters, the change could give private asset managers access to about $9 trillion in 401(k) assets. T. Rowe Price manages $1.6 trillion, of which around $1 trillion is retirement-related. T. Rowe CEO Rob Sharps said it is reasonable to expect that all of the different products could be in market by mid-2026.
The product set will be tailored by client type. Target-date funds, which are popular with investors, will hold a small portion in alternative assets with the remainder in public and liquid investments, and the alternative share may decline as the retirement date approaches. Separate alternative portfolios aimed at wealthy clients will mix private credit, private equity, or funds combining private equity and stocks. Goldman's head of wealth and asset management, Marc Nachmann, said the goal is eventually to open the products to everyone, though he acknowledged it is early days, with alternatives today mainly held by large institutions, endowments and high-net-worth individuals.
Analysts have pointed to risks including limited liquidity and transparent pricing. Sharps said newer structures can provide some liquidity and daily pricing to give individual investors more comfort. The products will impose limits on the share of portfolios that can go into alternatives, and managers will include alternatives in funds with retirement dates decades away in pursuit of higher returns. Sharps projected that alternatives could eventually reach 10% to 20% of total retirement assets over the long term.
The relationship dates back further than the recent deal. Sharps and Goldman President John Waldron began discussing the convergence of public and private markets and the growth of private assets about a year ago, and substantive deal talks began in early summer 2025, Sharps said.
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