The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will hold a public roundtable on March 4, 2026, to consider the increased participation of retail investors in private markets. The meeting will address the governance, valuation and regulatory standards that arise in opening private markets to individual investors.
Changing Dynamics in Access to Private Markets
Private markets, which were traditionally accessible only to institutional and qualified investors, have begun to reach a wider audience thanks to the new fund structures and intermittent investment instruments developed recently. The diversity of products offered by asset managers to meet the growing demand for private equity, private credit and alternative strategies is causing regulators to review existing frameworks and rules.
Boundaries Between Public and Private Markets Are Becoming Blurred
The first panel of the meeting, titled “When Two Worlds Collide,” will discuss how types of assets that were previously only subject to private access have become widespread through public products. Speakers will include Cliff Asness of AQR Capital Management, Katie King of PwC, John Finley of Blackstone and Marc Pinto of Moody’s Ratings. In the panel, fundamental issues such as transparency of valuation, liquidity management and investor protection will be discussed.
Experts question why regulators still haven’t come up with a definitive solution to the long-running MMTLP dispute, which has been dogged by allegations of market manipulation and short selling. It is reported that investors have suffered losses and market stability has been damaged in this regard.
It has been reported that the SEC’s planned roundtable session can be followed both face-to-face and online. At the event, it was stated that private market valuations and opening up processes to individual investors will be evaluated responsibly.
Management and Compliance Processes are on the Agenda
In the second panel of the meeting, the governance side of the new models and structures created by fund managers for private market access will be examined. This session will be moderated by SEC officials Blair Burnett and Michael Republicano, and will include participants from PwC, Deloitte, Cleary Gottlieb, Comply and Cliffwater. In the panel, good practices regarding compliance with rule 2a-5 applied to Funds, valuation auditing and management of operational and regulatory risks will be discussed.
The meeting will be opened by SEC Investment Management Division Director Brian Daly, followed by Chairman Paul Atkins’ evaluations. Executives of asset management companies, credit rating agencies and representatives from professional services groups will also participate in the discussions.
The SEC announced that the roundtable meeting will be publicly and livestreamed. The meeting aims to transparently examine the potential impacts of fund models that expand individual investors’ access to private markets.
On the other hand, the SEC recently granted a regulatory exemption to WisdomTree Digital Trust’s money market digital fund, allowing for more flexible pricing. This step indicates that the effects of digitalized financial products on the sector continue to be carefully monitored.
