On Friday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the Labor Department to clear the way for private equity, real estate, cryptocurrencies, and other alternative assets to enter 401(k) lineups, opening up defined-contribution flows to private markets for the first time.

The directive targets a pool of roughly $12.5 trillion held in individual retirement accounts across a user base of around 90 million participants.

The order instructs the Department of Labor to revisit its alternatives guidance under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act within the next six months and to clarify fiduciary obligations tied to offering professionally managed asset allocation funds with alternative sleeves.

It also directs Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer to coordinate with the Treasury Department, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and other regulators to determine whether additional rule changes are needed to support the effort.

The likely implementation path involves collective investment trusts used as target-date funds or managed accounts, with alternatives limited to a minority allocation. That design, however, forces daily pricing and liquidity at the wrapper level, even when underlying assets are illiquid or valued quarterly.

As Ropes & Gray notes, “This means someone will need to be responsible for striking a daily NAV on the illiquid alternative assets.”

Alongside daily pricing concerns, management of capital calls and fee structures is also top of mind.

Blackstone, KKR, BlackRock, Blue Owl, and Partners Group, among others, have already struck partnerships with 401(k) administrators, and firms have been testing infrastructure around interval funds, tender-offer funds, and CIT sleeves that can plug into target-date strategies.

The remaining overhang is litigation potential: ERISA class actions have targeted fees and performance for decades, and plan committees have been wary of options that bring higher headline fees, leverage, or valuation opacity.

The order does include a safe‑harbor instruction aimed at reducing possible exposure, but that probably isn't enough on its own. In a client briefing, Kirkland & Ellis notes, “Any meaningful litigation reforms will likely require congressional action.”

The SEC has also been asked to facilitate access for participant-directed plans, including potential changes around investor qualification standards. This means a possible update to accredited investor and qualified purchaser guidelines in consultation with the Labor Department, which could expand the addressable universe of compliant products for participant‑directed platforms.

For sponsors that can navigate a successful roll-out, the door is now open to capture a portion of the untapped, recurring source of capital provided by defined contribution plans. As institutional LPs manage liquidity and run up against private markets allocation limits, individual investors may be the next big growth catalyst for fund managers.

• EQT agreed to acquire a controlling stake in Remember & Company, a South Korean AI-enabled HR tech platform, for approximately $400 million from Ark & Partners.

• Gildan Activewear (TSX: GIL) is in advanced talks to acquire underwear maker Hanesbrands (NYSE: HBI) for nearly $5 billion, per the Financial Times.

• Cardinal Health (NYSE: CAH) agreed to acquire Solaris Health, a urological physician practice management platform, for $2.4 billion from Lee Equity Partners.

• Apollo Global Management is close to acquiring Kelvion, a German cooling equipment maker, from Triton for more than €2 billion, per Bloomberg.

• Centerbridge Partners agreed to acquire MeridianLink (NYSE: MLNK), a banking software provider, for $2 billion, or $20 per share, representing a 26% premium to Friday's closing price.

• DigitalBridge Investments and Crestview Partners agreed to acquire broadband provider WideOpenWest (NYSE: WOW) for $1.5 billion, or $5.20 per share.

• Bayer agreed to acquire Kumquat Biosciences, a San Diego-based cancer drugmaker with backing from investors including OrbiMed and Sequoia Capital, for up to $1.3 billion.

• Inflexion Private Equity launched Absolute Financial Group, a new independent financial advice consolidator with £100 million in committed funding.

• Hubbell (NYSE: HUBB) agreed to acquire DMC Power, a provider of connectors and tooling for utility substation and transmission markets, for $825 million from Golden Gate Capital.

• Pacific Equity Partners is in talks to acquire a 75 percent stake in DC Co, a standalone data center business being spun off from Spark New Zealand (NZ: SPK), in a deal valuing the assets at $705 million.

• MARA Holdings (Nasdaq: MARA) agreed to acquire a 64% stake in Exaion, a high-performance computing data center developer, from France's EDF Ventures for $168 million.

• Proterra Investment Partners acquired AcreTrader, a farmland investment platform.

• EIG agreed to acquire nearly a 50 percent stake in TgP, the operator of Peru's main natural gas and natural gas liquids pipelines, from CPP Investments.

• S4 Capital (LSE: SFOR), the UK ad agency founded by Martin Sorrell, is in talks to acquire MSQ Partners from LDC and One Equity Partners.

• Inspirit Equity invested in Nomi Health, an Orem, Utah-based healthcare payment platform..

• Mantucket Capital acquired Turbo Terminal Tractors, a Gainesville, Georgia-based provider of warehouse terminal tractor rental and leasing services.

• Cook & Boardman Group, a portfolio company of Platinum Equity, acquired the assets of A.J. Labourdette, a New Orleans-based telecom and security integration contractor.

• Smart Communications, a Cinven-owned enterprise customer communications platform, acquired Pendula, a provider of orchestration and digital delivery technology.

• Verdane acquired a majority stake in Konvekta, a Swiss provider of energy recovery technology for ventilation systems.

Tech, Vertical SaaS, & Misc. Enterprise

• Laurel, a time intelligence platform for professional services firms, raised $100 million in Series C funding led by IVP, with participation from GV, 01A, ACME, Anthos, AIX Ventures, and TIME Ventures.

• EliseAI, an AI platform for housing and healthcare industries, raised $75 million in Series D funding led by Sapphire Ventures, with participation from Navitas Capital, Point72 Private Investments, DivcoWest Ventures, and Koch Real Estate Investments.

• Squint, an AI/AR platform that digitizes factory operator expertise, raised $40 million in Series B funding at a $265 million valuation co-led by The Westly Group and TCV, with participation from Sequoia Capital and Menlo Ventures.

• Profound, a platform that helps businesses control how they appear in AI responses, raised $35 million in Series B funding led by Sequoia Capital, with participation from Kleiner Perkins, Khosla Ventures, Saga VC, and South Park Commons.

• GoodShip, a freight orchestration platform, raised $25 million in Series B funding led by Greenfield Partners, with participation from Bessemer Venture Partners, Ironspring Ventures, Chicago Ventures, and FUSE VC.

• Datumo, a Seoul-based AI data labeling and model evaluation company, raised $15.5 million in Series A funding from Salesforce Ventures, KB Investment, ACVC Partners, SBI Investment, Shinhan Venture Investment, Kiwoom Investment, and Moorim Capital.

• Certivity, a Munich-based company for technical compliance management, raised €13.3 million in Series A funding co-led by Almaz Capital and UVC Partners, with participation from Earlybird X, High-Tech Gründerfonds, and Plug and Play.

• Dealops, a pricing infrastructure platform for enterprise sales teams, raised $7 million in seed funding co-led by Pear VC and General Catalyst, with participation from Depth VC, Elsa Ventures, Weekend Fund, and Flex Capital.

Fintech

• Novig, a peer-to-peer sports prediction market platform, raised $18 million in Series A funding led by Forerunner, with participation from Y Combinator, NFX, Perceptive Ventures, and Gaingels.

Consumer & Media

• Chowdeck, a Lagos-based food delivery platform, raised $9 million in Series A funding led by Novastar Ventures, with participation from Y Combinator, AAIC Investment, Rebel Fund, GFR Fund, Kaleo, and HoaQ.

Healthcare

• SetPoint Medical, a developer of neuroimmune modulation therapies for autoimmune diseases, raised $115 million in Series D funding co-led by Elevage Medical Technologies and Ally Bridge Group, with participation from Northwell Health, SPRIG Equity, Norwest, NEA, Viking Global Investors, Action Potential Venture Capital, Abbott, Boston Scientific, Euclidean Capital, Richard King Mellon Foundation, Morgenthaler Ventures, ShangBay Capital, Ascendum Capital, Catalio Capital Management, Gilmartin Capital, and Midas Capital.

• Truemeds, an Indian e-pharmacy platform offering generic alternatives to branded medicines, raised $85 million in Series C funding co-led by Accel and Peak XV Partners, with participation from WestBridge Capital and Info Edge Ventures.

• Jocasta Neuroscience, a Scottsdale-based company developing α-Klotho protein treatments for cognitive decline in neurodegenerative diseases, raised $35 million in Series A funding led by True Ventures, with participation from Moore Strategic Ventures, SC8 Investments, Glentura, and Yagan Family Foundation.

• Tahoe Therapeutics, a developer of virtual cell models for drug discovery, raised $30 million in Series A funding led by Amplify Partners, with participation from Databricks Ventures, Wing Venture Capital, General Catalyst, AIX Ventures, Mubadala Ventures, Civilization Ventures, and Conviction.

• Arintra, an autonomous medical coding platform for healthcare providers, raised $21 million in Series A funding led by Peak XV Partners, with participation from Endeavor Health Ventures, Y Combinator, Counterpart Ventures, Spider Capital, and Ten13.

Industrials, Greentech, & Other

• Aira, a Stockholm-based company focused on residential heat pump systems, raised €150 million in equity funding from Altor, Kallskär, Kinnevik, Lingotto, and Temasek.

• BinSentry, a company that uses AI sensors to optimize animal feed supply chains, raised $50 million in Series C funding led by Lead Edge Capital.

• Softwear Automation, an Atlanta-based autonomous sewing technology developer, raised $20 million in Series B1 funding led by BESTSELLER's Invest FWD, with participation from CTW Venture Partners, SRI Capital, and MacDonald Ventures.

• JMI Equity raised $3.1 billion for its twelfth software-focused growth equity fund.

• Pacific Avenue Capital Partners raised more than $1.65 billion for its second fund focused on corporate carve-outs and complex situations in the middle market.

• Sound Point Capital held a $1.1 billion first close for its third private credit fund, which is targeting a total of $1.5 billion.

• LGT Capital Partners is targeting $1.2 billion for its sixth Asia-Pacific fund-of-funds, per PE International.

• Periscope Equity raised $370 million for its third fund focused on founder-owned tech-enabled business services companies.

Interested in partnering with Transacted? If you’re a financial services firm looking to connect with an engaged audience, please reach out.