Morgan Stanley Announces Plan To Acquire Private Shares Platform EquityZen

Morgan Stanley has agreed to acquire EwuityZen, a private shares platform. Morgan Stanley says the acquisition will improve its private market ecosystem, which provides a full-service offering to private firms and their shareholders. Morgan Stanley wants to improve its services through the acquisition by offering tender and liquidity programs, cap table solutions, secondary trading, and co-investment opportunities.

Morgan Stanley Will Use EquityZen’s User-Aligned Model To Offer Liquidity

Morgan Stanley also noted that EquityZen’s acquisition will support its plans to improve its relationships with private companies. It will leverage the new firm’s issuer-aligned model to offer its institutional clients more liquidity options and improved access to private shares.

Head of Morgan Stanley Wealth Management, Jed Finn, said: “We are thrilled to welcome the entire EquityZen team to Morgan Stanley.” The integration of EquityZen’s platform into Morgan Stanley’s business ecosystem will address clients’ needs as firms stay private longer.

The firm will deliver liquidity solutions to early investors in a coordinated, seamless manner. The acquisition will enable Morgan Stanley to combine a private shares marketplace with its cap table management solutions to provide end-to-end solutions to its clients.

The issuer will be at the center of the decision-making in the integrated offering. This will give the issuers complete control over how and when their shares are traded. EquityZen will provide operational benefits that make processing easier for issuers and their employees. The cap table solution will be provided by Morgan Stanley, while EquityZen will power the direct integration for issuers.

EquityZen has been partnering with private companies and retail investors since 2013 to expand access to private markets.

The firm processes more than 49,000 transactions from more than 450 private companies. Presently, it has more than 800,000 registered users who benefit from its scalable and purpose-built technology.

EquityZen Will Provide More Opportunities For Advisors And Their Clients

Head of Private Markets at Morgan Stanley, Michael Gaviser, said the deal will enable the company to expand its growing private markets business. He added that there is an increased interest in private markets across its 20 million clients.

Consequently, the firm decides to connect with EquityZen to provide these needs through a broad technology-driven solution. The collaboration will broaden the firm’s scope, providing more opportunities for advisors and their clients.

However, the deal will be sealed after all the necessary regulatory approvals are received. Headquartered in New York, EquityZen operates with a team of more than 50 professionals.

Chief Executive Officer of EquityZen, Atish Davda, stated that the firm is excited about the acquisition and the opportunity to work with Morgan Stanley. He added that the collaboration will expand its operations and reach more shareholders and investors than ever before.