Retail Investors in Private Assets (RIPA) Working Group

Private Equity · Private Credit · Household Access
Overview Fall 2025 Spring 2026 Reading List

Fall 2025 Program

Meetings Biweekly on Tuesdays
12:30–2:00pm ET
Format Two 30-minute presentations
followed by 30-minute discussion
Location In person / Zoom
Columbia Business School
Session 0: Overview of Program
Sep 2
Presenter: Mike Ewens (Columbia)
Head TA: Jacob Faber (Columbia)
Session 1: How Do Households Access Financial Markets Today?(Chair: Anna Helmke (Vanderbilt))
Sep 16
Presenters: Xuelin Li (Columbia), Michael Gropper (UC Boulder)
TA: Nolwenn Allaire (Columbia)
  • What investment opportunities are currently available to households inside retirement accounts vs. outside?
  • Through what vehicles do they currently access private and alternative assets?
  • What are the determinants of access across households (income, wealth, sophistication)?
Session 2: What are “Private Markets” Anyway?(Chair: Young Soo Jang (Penn State))
Sep 30
Presenters: Ben Bates (Harvard), Mike Ewens (Columbia)
TA: Shuwen Wang (Columbia)
  • How do private equity and alternatives compare to public markets in terms of returns, risks, and structure?
  • What institutional/legal details shape investment outcomes?
  • How should performance be measured, and against what benchmarks?
Session 3: What Do Households Actually See?(Chair: Steve Utke (UConn))
Oct 14
Presenters: Brian K. Baik (HBS), Mariia Nykyforovych (George Mason)
TA: Ronald Wang (HBS)
  • How do traditional institutional LPs interact with GPs, and how would this differ for retail investors?
  • What information is disclosed to retail investors at both the fund and portfolio-company level?
  • What incentives do GPs face to smooth NAVs, and how does this affect retail outcomes?
Session 4: How Do Households Make Portfolio Decisions?(Chair: Valeria Fedyk (ASU))
Oct 28
Presenters: Federico Mainardi (Columbia), Oksana Smirnova (Cornell)
TA: Giacomo Ricciardi (Columbia)
  • Do private markets improve risk-return tradeoffs for households?
  • What frictions or constraints limit household participation or benefits?
  • How do platforms, advisors, and nudges shape allocations?
Session 5: Who’s Watching?(Chair: Mayank Kumar (Boston University))
Nov 11
Presenters: Emmanuel Yimfor (Columbia), Minmo Gahng (Cornell)
TA: Luman Zou (Columbia)
  • What protections apply to retail investors entering private markets, across different product wrappers?
  • How do disclosure mandates differ for retirement products vs. non-retirement accounts?
  • Where do fiduciary duties, disclosure standards, and suitability checks fall short?
Session 6: Wrap Up Session
Dec 2
Presenter: Simon Oh (Columbia)

Participants

Brian K. Baik (HBS)
Ben Bates (Harvard)
Mike Ewens (Columbia)
Valeria Fedyk (ASU)
Minmo Gahng (Cornell)
Michael Gropper (UC Boulder)
Anna Helmke (Vanderbilt)
Young Soo Jang (Penn State)
Mayank Kumar (BU)
Xuelin Li (Columbia)
Federico Mainardi (Columbia)
Mariia Nykyforovych (George Mason)
Simon Oh (Columbia)
Oksana Smirnova (Cornell)
Steve Utke (UConn)
Emmanuel Yimfor (Columbia)