OneDigital is adding private-market exposure to its Personalized Portfolio program for 401(k) plan sponsors, aiming to broaden participants’ access to institutional-style strategies through a fiduciary-led structure focused on retirement outcomes.
The Atlanta-based insurance brokerage and financial services firm said the enhancement will incorporate select private equity, private credit, and opportunistic investment strategies via relationships with large alternative-asset managers, including Apollo, Ares, and Blackstone. OneDigital said the allocations will sit inside advisor-managed portfolios and are designed to enhance diversification while maintaining liquidity guidelines and fiduciary governance.
Vince Morris, President of OneDigital Financial Service, said the firm’s goal is to bring private investments—historically used by institutions and sophisticated investors—into workplace retirement plans “in a structured, fiduciary-aligned way” intended to improve outcomes over time.
Partner firms framed the initiative as part of a broader push to make private markets more accessible to individual retirement savers. Heather von Zuben, Blackstone’s Global Head of Retirement Solutions, said private markets have long offered potential benefits, such as enhanced returns and diversification, and that Blackstone is working with OneDigital on a framework that emphasizes participant outcomes. Raj Dhanda, Ares’ Global Head of Wealth Management, said Ares supports expanding retirement-plan access to private market asset classes that may help drive growth, income, and long-term stability.
Private investments in the program will be implemented through professionally managed, advisor-led portfolios overseen by its home office investment team. Allocations will be subject to due diligence, liquidity guidelines and fiduciary review, and plan sponsors will retain discretion over whether to adopt the option based on workforce needs and risk tolerance.
And the firm said collective investment trusts incorporating private investments are expected to be available to eligible plan sponsors beginning this quarter.
KEY QUOTES:
“At OneDigital, we believe everyone deserves access to the tools that support long-term financial security. Private investments have played an important role in driving outcomes for institutions and sophisticated investors for decades. By thoughtfully bringing these strategies into the workplace through our personalized portfolios program, we’re expanding access in a structured, fiduciary-aligned way with the aim of improved retirement outcomes over time.”
Vince Morris, President, OneDigital Financial Services
“For decades, private markets have helped institutions achieve potential enhanced returns, greater diversification, and reduced volatility. Blackstone has spent more than 20 years extending these same benefits to individual investors. We’re proud to work with OneDigital to expand access for retirement savers through a framework that prioritizes participant outcomes.”
Heather von Zuben, Global Head of Retirement Solutions, Blackstone
“We believe retirement plan participants should have access to private market asset classes, which have the potential to drive growth, generate income, and provide long-term stability. To that end, Ares is excited to work with OneDigital to offer direct private markets exposures to a broader set of individual investors.”
Raj Dhanda, Global Head of Wealth Management, Ares
