From Products to Portfolio: Jon Diorio on BlackRock’s Private Markets Focus (EP. 37)

Jon Diorio, Head of Alternatives for US Wealth, BlackRock, joins CAIS Co-President Brad Walker on CAIS Live Conversations: Building With Alts to discuss how he sees alternative investments reshaping wealth management for financial advisors. Jon shares how BlackRock is building its private markets platform across private equity, private credit, and infrastructure. He gets into why he thinks model portfolios may help advisors. They also explore the macro landscape, liquidity , and Jon’s views on why education remains key. Chapters The Shift from Brokerage to Advisory (01:38)Leading Product and Alternatives at BlackRock (06:11) BlackRock’s Private Market Platform: GIPS, GPS, and Preqin (08:26) Closing the Adoption Gap in Alternative Investments (11:48) Model Portfolios and the Convergence of Public & Private Markets (14:39) The Client Conversation: Access, Opportunity, and Private Credit (19:00) Navigating the 2026 Macro Landscape (23:30) Hedge Funds, AI-Driven Investing, and M&A Opportunities (27:13) Sequencing Private Markets for High-Net-Worth Portfolios (29:37) Liquidity as a Feature in Private Markets (32:34) Words of Wisdom: Show Up, Say Yes, and Be a Life Coach (36:39)