Get on the bus before it goes on sale! Goldman Sachs (GS.US) launches a new “direct private equity” platform to bring the wealthy to bet on the next SpaceX in advance

The Zhitong Finance App learned that, according to reports, Goldman Sachs (GS.US) has built a new platform to further expand its service footprint for high-net-worth customers and family offices. The demand from such investors for direct shareholding in rapidly growing private companies is increasing.

According to an internal memorandum, the newly established “Alternative Investment Platform” integrates Goldman Sachs' original alternative investment business with the two newly established teams. Among them, the new team focuses on direct investment in a single private enterprise rather than traditional private equity fund portfolios, and helps clients trade related holdings.

Christine Olson, global head of alternative investments at Goldman Sachs Wealth Management, said in an interview: “The market has always paid a lot of attention to large growing technology companies, and we hope to provide customers with layout channels before they enter the open market.”

Goldman Sachs's layout reflects two major trends reshaping the Wall Street landscape. On the one hand, Goldman Sachs has continued to expand the field of wealth management and asset management over the years because it is seen as providing a more stable source of revenue than investment banks and trading businesses; on the other hand, today's most successful startups have a long unlisted cycle than before, enabling early investors to seize most of the value-added space before the public enters the market.

Olson pointed out, “Today, the market value of the company reached the trillion dollar level when it went public. If you don't participate halfway, you'll definitely miss an important part of the growth cycle.”

Boosted by the AI boom

Olson revealed that Goldman Sachs has a history of nearly 20 years of direct investment in mature private companies for wealthy clients. Typical examples include Facebook before the 2012 IPO, as well as SpaceX (SPCX.US), Stripe, and Canva later. Customer demand for this asset class continued to rise, ultimately prompting management to decide to operate the business independently.

She said Goldman Sachs's goal is to help customers target potential targets before the company becomes a household name. Unlike targeting early-stage startups, Goldman Sachs usually focuses on mature companies with mature products, significant revenue, and clear profit paths to find what she calls the “best balance” between risk and reward.

And the boom in AI investment has further boosted demand. Olson pointed out that in addition to leading big model developers, Goldman Sachs is actively guiding customers to focus on infrastructure investments that support the bottom layer of AI, including data centers and related supporting projects.

The announcement coincided with Goldman Sachs announcing record quarterly revenue. Management specifically mentioned that investment banking, trading, and financing businesses all showed signs of AI-driven activity. Related results have further strengthened the market view that Goldman Sachs is expected to benefit from multiple dimensions of the AI investment cycle.

At the same time, the announcement also marks Goldman Sachs's step in institutionalizing private equity liquidity for clients. Through the newly established secondary market advisory team, Goldman Sachs plans to expand a trading platform to enable clients to trade private equity assets, while also providing advisory services for those who wish to withdraw from investments through channels other than Goldman Sachs.

Olson said, “We decided to separate this business and made it clear in a very clear way that this is the direction we are focusing our efforts on.”