About One-Quarter of Plan Sponsors Ponder Pivot to Private Assets, per BlackRock

As retirement confidence falters amid market volatility and shrinking savings, employers are increasingly considering a turn to private market investments to help close the gap, according to BlackRock’s 2025 Read on Retirement survey.

Nearly one-quarter of plan sponsors said they are considering adding alternative assets to their investment lineups. Performance was the most common driver of this shift, with 28% citing it as a top reason, closely followed by concerns over expected market volatility at 27%. When asked how they would introduce private assets, the most frequently chosen path was through a target–date fund, selected by 39% of respondents.

A separate study by Schroders found that nearly half of retirement plan participants would invest in private assets. 

Several industry insiders have told PLANSPONSOR that private assets and alternative investments are most likely to enter 401(k) plans as a “sliver” of a target–date fund or via managed accounts. The 10% to 20% exposure to private investments, proponents say, could help with diversification and can yield retirement savers better returns. 

Blackrock itself offers its clients access to private investments.

Thus, the survey also pointed to the potential long-term benefits of such moves. Thoughtfully integrating private assets into target-date solutions, BlackRock noted, could significantly increase retirement balances over a 40-year horizon.

BlackRock published a white paper in June that heavily advocated for the inclusion of private investments in target–date funds.

However, private markets remain largely absent from defined contribution plans, which for decades have relied primarily on public equities and bonds. Part of the reason for the absence, sources say, is private investments are more complex because they are often more illiquid and not priced daily, leading employers to fear costly litigation.

Only 3.9% of plans included alternative investments such as private equity in 2024—up from 2.2% the year before—according to the 2025 PLANSPONSOR DC Plan Benchmarking Report.

While the survey was conducted with 459 plan sponsors between February 2 and March 19, recent interest in adding private investments to 401(k) plans has increased since an executive order issued by President Donald Trump last month that directed regulatory agencies to provide plan sponsors guidance about adding the investments to their lineups.