It is no surprise that private assets are growing rapidly, driven by institutional allocations and increasing flows from private wealth. However, the industry continues to be constrained by a lack of transparency, with no common system to classify exposures, measure performance, or effectively communicate strategies. Against this backdrop, MSCI launched MSCI PACS, a proprietary asset classification framework designed to bring order, comparability, and consistency to private markets.
By covering a wide range of private assets, including private companies, real estate, and infrastructure, PACS provides detailed classifications that can be used to compare, analyze, and communicate portfolio strategies and performance effectively throughout the investment lifecycle, according to the firm in a statement.
“Private markets are at an inflection point, with growing relevance in the global financial ecosystem,” said Luke Flemmer, Head of Private Assets at MSCI. “With PACS, MSCI introduces the infrastructure that will define how private assets are identified, compared, and analyzed globally in the years to come.”
MSCI PACS is a global taxonomy created specifically for private assets. It builds on decades of MSCI’s leadership in providing standards and tools, including the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS®), which is used to categorize and compare publicly traded companies around the world.
PACS, offered as an AI-powered managed data service, applies consistent sector tagging at scale, providing a strong foundation of transparency and comparability to the private markets industry.
The launch of PACS reflects MSCI’s broad commitment to equipping private markets professionals with the tools, research, and data needed to improve transparency and support informed decision-making across their portfolios.
