Opto Investments hires BlackRock, Carta veterans to build out private-markets platform
What's the deal? Opto Investments has named Justin Mills as principal product manager and Rachel Hallock as head of design, two senior hires aimed at scaling its technology for private-markets investing. Opto acts as an outsourced chief investment officer for wealth management firms, family offices, and institutional investors.
What does Opto do? The firm helps allocators build, execute, and service white-labeled private investment vehicles, from a single-asset feeder to a diversified fund program. Founded by Palantir and Addepar entrepreneur Joe Lonsdale, it is backed by 8VC and Michael Dell's DFO ManagementDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →.
Who are the hires? Mills spent 15 years at Quellos Capital Management, later acquired by BlackRock, where he owned risk and analytics products supporting more than $80 billion in assets, before building teams at Smartsheet. Hallock brings more than 14 years in product design, including a stint at Carta, where she led design for its fund administration portfolio as it scaled from 300 firms to 4,000.
What changes? Mills will work to streamline Opto's technology, starting with easier client onboarding. Hallock will lead design across the platform advisors and CIOs use to bring clients into private markets.
Why now? The hires follow a run of expansion. In June, DayMark Wealth PartnersDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → announced a $25 million final close for a diversified private-markets fund built with Opto, after the firm partnered with Fidelis CapitalDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → in January and closed an AI-focused venture fund in May.
What they're saying: "We're bringing on senior, seasoned talent to take advantage of the growth that's ahead of us," said chief executive officer Ryan VanGorder.
The signal: As alternative investments become a bigger part of client portfolios, wealth firms are leaning on partners to handle the operational complexity. Opto's investment in product and design capacity points to continued demand for tools that make private-markets investing easier to deliver.
Read more: business.theantlersamerican.com
Image credit: Opto Investments
