Yann Magnan Shares What’s Next for Private Markets to Scale

Following 73 Strings’ win in the inaugural “Valuation Technology” award category, Yann Magnan, CEO of 73 Strings, sat down with The Drawdown to discuss what’s next for private markets to scale.

The Drawdown (TDD): What made 2024 a standout year for 73 Strings?

Yann Magnan (YM): Overall, 2024 was the year 73 Strings truly crossed the chasm. We moved from early adoption to broader market recognition, with an increasing number of leading global alternative investment managers embracing our platform to bring greater speed, intelligence and framework to valuation and portfolio monitoring.

Winning marquee clients, expanding our global footprint and recruiting the best professionals across valuations and technology were all fantastic milestones. Seeing our technology drive tangible operational efficiency and transparency for our clients proved that we’re not just building software, we’re solving fundamental challenges in private markets. And we were honoured to receive a huge amount of attention from highly sophisticated investors, which was another clear indication we were on the right path.

TDD: Our judges were impressed by the way 73 Strings has integrated AI into its offering. Can you explain the importance of AI to your valuation tools?

YM: AI has been central to our value proposition since the beginning of our journey in 2020. In a world where asset complexity is growing and speed is non-negotiable, AI facilitates the delivery of faster and more frequent valuations. From extracting data across disparate formats, our AI ensures that clients don’t just automate – they elevate. Crucially, we don’t use AI to replace human judgement, it’s there to inform it. It brings a level of scale and consistency while maintaining cost discipline, that no manual process can match, freeing up human talent to focus on high-value decisions and analysis rather than manual tasks.

TDD: How do you perceive competition between tech platforms and service providers in private markets and how do you see that evolving?

YM: Service providers have long delivered trusted expertise – that hasn’t changed and won’t change. But, as expectations for valuation frequency and transparency rise, the challenge is scale. Manual processes, however skilled, are not sustainable. Platforms don’t get tired, need breaks, or take holidays. That’s where technology steps in, whether on the GP, consultant or auditor side – not to replace judgment but to empower it.

We’re seeing increasing convergence: consultants and auditors are looking to license purpose-built platforms like 73 Strings to meet GPs demands efficiently, without compromising on quality or burning out their teams. This model, where technology is developed and maintained by tech specialists, and expert opinion remains with the valuation professionals, is what will drive scale and consistency.

The future lies in collaboration: a robust ecosystem where technology firms develop proven and conflict-free platforms that empower the industry at large, and valuation professionals focus on their DNA: delivering trusted opinions, based on better and faster data than they’ve ever had access to before.

TDD: Can you give us one prediction for private markets in 2026?

YM: Retailisation is fundamentally reshaping private markets and we expect this trend to accelerate through 2026. As interval funds and evergreen structures gain momentum, the demand for faster, more frequent and transparent valuations will intensify. These vehicles push private markets closer to daily liquidity expectations, but legacy valuation processes simply weren’t built for that pace. And in turn that will have ripple effects across all segments of the industry.

The investment firms that thrive will be those that embrace digitalisation, prioritise data as a strategic asset and pursue real-time insights. As data volumes grow, the ability to structure, interpret and act on that information at scale will separate leaders from laggards. The monitoring and valuation processes are those which need and create the most data points, and firms that are going to harness that will create extra intelligence and value for themselves and their investors.

Technology will be the key enabler, not just in automating workflows, but in applying next-generation AI. We believe agentic AI will unlock a step-change in efficiency and decision-support, turning data into dynamic action. In this environment, scalable, always-on valuation capabilities won’t just be a competitive advantage, they’ll be a market necessity.

This article was originally published by The Drawdown: https://the-drawdown.com/article/the-drawdown-awards-2025-first-string