Private market investing without sky-high minimums

To put it simply, because diversification of your portfolio is a good thing, and private market investing has a great track record.

Private equity, private credit, and private infrastructure have historically delivered higher returns than public markets for two reasons: higher risk and lower liquidity. Like public markets, taking on more risk can lead to higher returns. But with private markets, your money is usually tied up for longer and can’t be sold at any time. Investors have traditionally been rewarded for giving up that flexibility with the potential for higher returns.

Each of the asset classes play a different role. Private equity focuses on growing businesses, private credit generates income through lending, and infrastructure provides stable, often inflation-linked cash flows. Together, they can help diversify your portfolio and reduce your reliance on the ups and downs of public markets.

Yes, the minimum is $10,000, but the right amount depends on your overall financial situation. Private markets should generally represent a portion of a diversified portfolio — not your entire investment. That's why we've built in guardrails, including an investment limit based on your overall assets. Most institutional investors allocate between 20–30% of their total portfolio to private markets. Talk to our team if you'd like personalized guidance.

Private equity, private credit, and private infrastructure are high-risk investments. Returns are not guaranteed, the fund has limited liquidity compared to public markets, and you may lose some or all of your principal. Each asset class carries its own risk profile. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Wealthsimple reviews all investments for client suitability — if you don't meet the criteria, we'll redirect you to a more appropriate product.

The fund offers monthly redemption windows, so you can access your money more often than with most private market investments available in Canada. However, Wealthsimple may occasionally limit or pause redemptions.

The Private Market fund has a two-layer fee structure: the Wealthsimple management fees, and the underlying manager fees. Wealthsimple charges a 1% annual management fee on private market assets. The underlying managers typically charge a management fee of around 1.25%–1.50% and a performance fee of around 15% over a set hurdle rate. You can find more about our fees here.

Sagard, Dawson, Cliffwater, LGT, EQT, Accolade, and Stonepeak manage the underlying investments. All are institutional-caliber private markets managers with significant global AUM. Wealthsimple provides access to this level of management at a lower minimum than traditionally required and no accredited investor status needed.

The Private Market fund is a standalone private markets investment — you add it as a sleeve alongside the public equities portfolio you already manage. Summit is a complete managed portfolio that includes both public and private market exposure, handled entirely by Wealthsimple. If you like to manage your own investments and want to add private markets, the Private Market fund may be a good fit for you. If you prefer a hands-off approach but would still like private markets in your mix, Summit may be a better choice.

It depends. If you open the Private Market fund in a tax-advantaged account like the RRSP or TFSA, there are no impacts on your annual tax filing. But if you open the fund in a non-registered account, it's important to be aware that there are a few different types of returns — like interest income — that are treated as income and taxed like it too, even if you don't withdraw the funds.