Pension consultancy Isio has launched a new platform to allow investors such as pension schemes to sell illiquid assets more efficiently.



The company said it is responding to demand to sell illiquid assets, along with the difficulties sellers face doing so.

It said desire to sell illiquid assets increased following the market volatility caused by the Budget in September 2022, with pension schemes seeking greater liquidity, to rebalance strategic asset allocation, or to prepare for an insurance transaction.

Typically, clients have used brokers to sell illiquid assets, but that process is inefficient in nascent markets such as private debt and infrastructure equity secondaries, Isio said.

It said its new Isio Fund Liquidity Options platform provides an alternative in these markets by leveraging Isio’s relationships with private debt and infrastructure equity secondaries buyers to lower fees while making the process more efficient.

The business said it is currently advising a number of illiquid assets sales, across private debt and infrastructure equity while also exploring other ways of obtaining liquidity for schemes outside of outright sales. 



Ajith Balan Nair, head of asset class and manager research at Isio, said: “Private markets asset classes have provided excellent sources of alternative income and growth for pension scheme investors in recent years, but the fallout of the LDI crisis and being closer to the endgame is prompting many of them to sell.

“Unfortunately, this is often easier said than done, and the process for exiting illiquid assets can be slow and expensive.” 



The firm said it hopes to grow the platform over time.