BlackRock Leads Big Firms Racing to Put Private Assets Into ETFs

What You Need To Know

• BlackRock's $3.2 billion deal to buy Preqin supports the firm's aim to "index the private markets," CEO Larry Fink said.
• There are a slew of technical and regulatory hurdles to overcome before real estate and pre-public companies can be squeezed into an ETF wrapper.
• Currently at least 15 ETFs seek to offer some private-market exposure in the U.S.