How Corastone's Blockchain Simplifies Private Markets Operations

The Private Markets Paradox: Why Operational Complexity Has Become Your Biggest Competitive Disadvantage

What if the barrier preventing your firm from capturing explosive growth in private markets isn't regulatory or capital-related, but something far more fundamental—the operational infrastructure itself?

This question sits at the heart of a significant industry inflection point. Private markets have exploded from under $1 trillion to more than $13 trillion by the end of 2024, with BlackRock projecting the sector could exceed $20 trillion by 2030.[1] Yet despite this meteoric growth, the operational backbone supporting these transactions remains fragmented, manual, and fundamentally misaligned with the speed and scale the market now demands.[1][3]

The Hidden Cost of Fragmentation

Consider the current state of private market operations. General Partners, wealth managers, and fund administrators operate across multiple disconnected systems, reconciling data across platforms, managing redundant onboarding processes, and executing transactions through manual workflows that haven't fundamentally evolved in decades.[1][3] Each integration point represents friction. Each manual step introduces risk. Each data reconciliation cycle delays innovation.

This operational drag creates a cascading effect: it limits access for emerging wealth managers, constrains how quickly asset managers can scale, and ultimately restricts the universe of investors who can meaningfully participate in private markets.[1][3] In an era where technology has democratized access to nearly every other asset class, private markets remain trapped in a legacy operational model—not because of regulatory constraints, but because the infrastructure itself was never designed for the scale and speed the market now requires.

Doug Krupa, KKR's head of global wealth solutions in the Americas, articulated this challenge directly: "Innovations in product structure are making high-quality private markets investments more accessible, but complex operational processes continue to create barriers to entry, ultimately impacting the investor experience."[1] This isn't a peripheral observation—it's a strategic admission that technology, not product design or capital availability, has become the limiting factor in market expansion.

Infrastructure as Competitive Advantage

Enter a fundamentally different approach to digital infrastructure. Rather than bolting blockchain onto existing workflows, what if you rebuilt the operational layer from first principles—designing it specifically for how private markets actually function?[3][5]

This is precisely what Corastone represents: a blockchain infrastructure platform that connects the entire investment lifecycle on a single, shared digital foundation.[1][3] But the significance extends far beyond technical architecture. This represents a strategic reorientation—from viewing infrastructure as a cost center to recognizing it as a core competitive advantage.[5]

The platform operates on permissioned blockchain technology, which is fundamentally different from public blockchain approaches.[1][3][5] Rather than sacrificing privacy for transparency or requiring complex cryptographic key management, permissioned networks enable structured, real-time data sharing with full auditability while maintaining institutional-grade security and regulatory compliance.[5] Each participant maintains their own records while accessing a shared source of truth—a model that preserves data ownership and operational control while eliminating reconciliation friction.[5][7]

Why This Moment Matters

The timing of Corastone's launch with founding clients including KKR, Apollo Global Management, Franklin Templeton, and Morgan Stanley isn't coincidental.[1][2][3] These institutions represent the infrastructure of the private markets themselves. Their collective decision to converge on a single digital platform signals something profound: the industry has reached consensus that fragmented operations are no longer acceptable.

More significantly, this represents a shift in how institutional capital approaches digital transformation. Rather than viewing blockchain as a speculative technology, leading asset managers are deploying it as a pragmatic solution to an immediate operational problem.[1][3][5] The platform streamlines onboarding, automates transaction workflows, and provides real-time visibility across the investment lifecycle—capabilities that translate directly into competitive advantage.[1][3]

With subscriptions already live and capabilities for capital calls, valuation updates, redemptions, and transfers planned, Corastone is moving beyond conceptual promise into operational reality.[1][3] This matters because it establishes a new baseline for what institutional-grade digital infrastructure should deliver: end-to-end automation, real-time data, and unparalleled speed and scalability.[1][3]

The Broader Ecosystem Implication

What makes this development particularly significant is its potential to unlock an entirely new participant class. Bain & Company estimates that individual investors could account for up to 25 percent of growth in the alternatives sector over the next decade.[1] Yet this expansion requires more than product innovation—it requires operational infrastructure capable of handling dramatically increased transaction volume without proportional increases in cost or headcount.

By concentrating exclusively on digital infrastructure rather than product distribution, Corastone operates as a neutral platform serving all participants' interests.[3][7] General Partners gain the ability to scale distribution without rebuilding operational systems. Wealth managers expand client access without managing complex integrations. Fund administrators achieve operational scale without adding headcount. This alignment of incentives—where infrastructure improvements benefit every participant—creates the conditions for genuine ecosystem transformation.[3][5][7]

The contrast with legacy approaches is instructive. Traditional systems require multiple platforms and point-to-point integrations, each introducing complexity and operational risk.[1][3] A single integration into Corastone's infrastructure yields secure connection to the entire network, enabling asset managers to transact with counterparties without bespoke builds or duplicative onboarding.[7]

Strategic Implications for Your Organization

This infrastructure evolution raises critical questions for wealth managers, asset managers, and fund administrators:

Are your current operational systems constraining your growth potential? If your firm is managing private market transactions across multiple platforms, reconciling data across systems, and executing manual workflows, you're not just operating inefficiently—you're operating at a structural disadvantage relative to institutions leveraging unified digital infrastructure.[1][3][5]

Can you afford to remain outside this ecosystem? As leading institutions converge on shared infrastructure, the competitive pressure to participate intensifies. Firms that maintain isolated systems face increasing friction in counterparty interactions, longer transaction cycles, and higher operational costs.[3][5]

What does your operational roadmap look like for the next five years? With private markets projected to exceed $20 trillion by 2030 and individual investor participation accelerating, the infrastructure decisions you make today will determine whether your firm is positioned to capture growth or constrained by legacy operational models.[1]

The private markets industry is experiencing a fundamental infrastructure transition. The question isn't whether this transition will occur—it's whether your organization will lead it, participate in it, or be left behind by it.

For organizations seeking to build scalable technology platforms that can handle complex financial workflows, understanding these infrastructure patterns becomes crucial. Similarly, firms looking to optimize their pricing strategies must consider how operational efficiency translates into competitive positioning.

The convergence of institutional capital around shared digital infrastructure represents more than technological evolution—it signals a fundamental shift in how financial markets will operate. Organizations that recognize infrastructure as a strategic differentiator, rather than merely a cost center, position themselves to capture disproportionate value as markets continue their digital transformation.

As the private markets ecosystem evolves toward greater automation and integration, the firms that thrive will be those that view operational excellence not as a back-office function, but as the foundation of competitive advantage. The infrastructure decisions being made today will determine market leadership for the next decade.

What is the "private markets paradox" described in the article?

The paradox is that private markets have grown dramatically in size, yet the main limiter to further expansion is not capital or regulation but outdated operational infrastructure. Fragmented, manual systems create friction that prevents firms from scaling, onboarding new investor types, and moving with the speed the market now requires.

How does operational fragmentation impose hidden costs on firms?

Multiple disconnected systems require repeated onboarding, manual reconciliations, bespoke integrations, and error-prone workflows. These translate to higher headcount, slower transactions, operational risk, limited distribution scale, and delayed product innovation—collectively constraining growth and competitiveness.

What is permissioned blockchain and why is it preferred here over public blockchains?

A permissioned blockchain is a controlled network where only authorized participants can transact and access data. It preserves institutional privacy, supports governance and compliance requirements, provides full auditability, and avoids some public-chain complexities (e.g., public transparency and heavy cryptographic key management), making it better suited for regulated private-market workflows.

What is Corastone and what operational problems does it address?

Corastone is a permissioned blockchain infrastructure platform designed to connect the entire private-investment lifecycle on a single shared digital foundation. It aims to eliminate reconciliation, streamline onboarding, automate transaction workflows (capital calls, redemptions, transfers, valuations), and provide real-time visibility across counterparties.

Why does it matter that major firms like KKR, Apollo, Franklin Templeton, and Morgan Stanley are founding clients?

These institutions are core infrastructure participants in private markets. Their convergence on a single platform signals industry consensus that fragmented operations are unacceptable and increases the platform’s likelihood of becoming a network standard—reducing friction for the broader ecosystem and accelerating adoption.

Which market participants benefit most from shared infrastructure?

General Partners gain scalable distribution without rebuilding operations; wealth managers can expand client access without managing complex integrations; fund administrators can handle higher volumes without proportional headcount increases. Overall, everyone benefits from reduced friction, faster execution, and improved investor experience.

Does adopting a platform like Corastone eliminate the need for bespoke integrations and reconciliations?

Yes—one of the platform’s core promises is that a single secure integration connects a participant to the entire network, removing point-to-point builds and the repetitive reconciliations that come with them. That reduces time-to-transact and operational overhead.

How is data ownership, privacy, and auditability handled on a permissioned network?

Permissioned networks let each participant retain their own records while sharing a verifiable source of truth for transactions. Access is governed by permissions and role-based controls, ensuring privacy between counterparties, while built-in audit trails provide immutability and regulatory visibility where required.

Is permissioned blockchain secure and compliant enough for institutional use?

Yes—permissioned platforms are designed with institutional security and governance in mind: authenticated participants, controlled access, comprehensive logging, and governance layers that support regulatory and compliance needs. They avoid exposing sensitive transaction data to the public while maintaining auditability.

What strategic questions should my firm be asking in light of this infrastructure shift?

Key questions include: Are our current systems constraining growth? Can we afford to remain outside shared infrastructure? What does our five-year operational roadmap look like? How will we integrate or partner with network platforms to maintain competitive positioning?

How should firms prepare to evaluate or adopt shared private-market infrastructure?

Practical steps: audit current workflows and integration points; quantify reconciliation and headcount costs; build an operational roadmap aligned to business strategy; pilot integrations with platform partners; define governance, data access, and compliance requirements; and assess vendor neutrality and network effects before committing.

What is the potential market impact of better infrastructure for private markets?

Improved infrastructure can unlock greater scale, lower costs, and wider investor access—potentially enabling faster growth of the private markets and increasing participation from individual investors. This could materially expand the addressable market and change distribution dynamics across the industry.

What is Corastone’s current status and what capabilities are planned?

Corastone has live subscriptions and is rolling out capabilities to automate capital calls, valuations, redemptions, transfers, and more. The platform is moving from conceptual proofs toward operational production, with additional features and network expansion planned as more institutions join.

If I join a neutral infrastructure platform, will I be locked into a single vendor or lose control?

Neutral infrastructure platforms that emphasize interoperability and governed access aim to avoid vendor lock-in by enabling standard integrations and preserving participant control over data and processes. Firms should, however, evaluate governance, exit provisions, API standards, and interoperability before joining.