The State of U.S. Retail and Institutional Asset Management 2023
Defining Professionally Managed Assets Across Distribution Channels
The Entire U.S. Asset Management Landscape, All in One Report
- Review comprehensive market sizing and major trends evolving within the retail and institutional asset management industry
- Evaluate how asset managers need to be positioning various business functions (e.g., distribution, product) to take advantage of industry disruption resulting from COVID-19
- Review how assets in retail and institutional client channels are shifting and which segments can be expected to grow more than others moving forward
- Learn how investor appetite for various investment vehicle wrappers is changing and how asset managers need to offer their strategies to different client segments
- Understand the role that intermediaries (e.g., broker/dealer home offices, consultants) have in the distribution landscape and how that role is evolving
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Summary
This report provides a comprehensive overview of the aggregate U.S. asset management landscape. Intended for U.S. asset managers, or those seeking distribution opportunities in the U.S., this report provides a quantitative evaluation that sizes the current addressable U.S. asset management landscape, covering all distribution channels, client segments, and product vehicles within the retail and institutional marketplaces—with emphasis on the interaction between these two segments.
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Each report is lead authored by a senior Cerulli analyst with significant industry experience. The report incorporates qualitative and quantitative inputs, based on Cerulli’s proprietary research process. For more on our research process, click here.
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A Note from the Author
$60.4 Trillion in Assets Under Professional Management in the U.S.

Brendan Powers, CFA
Director
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Brendan Powers, CFA
Director
Brendan is a member of Cerulli’s Product Development practice, which focuses on trends related to asset managers’ product development and management functions. This broadly includes assessing the opportunity for product development, evaluating emerging product trends, and understanding distribution and product positioning for investment products across retail and institutional channels.
Prior to joining Cerulli, Brendan worked as a Senior Client Associate at Eaton Vance Management, focusing primarily on the firm’s exchange funds.
Full biography here.
There are $60.4 trillion in assets under professional management in the U.S., according to our latest sizing. Sliced between retail and institutional, retail client assets dipped below $30 trillion in 2022, while institutional channel assets total $30.9 trillion. This reverses a longer-term trend where retail client channel assets grew faster than institutional client channel assets. Much of the decline in retail assets (-11.2%) can be attributed to the channel’s higher equity allocation. Comparatively, institutional client channel assets declined 9.3%. Looking forward, we do not expect that institutional channel growth will outpace that of retail client channels, especially as retirement plan assets roll over into advisor-managed IRAs and corporate DB plans freeze and terminate. In fact, it is likely that retail client channel assets will surpass institutional channel assets over the next few years.
The opacity and complexity of the U.S. asset management market make it challenging for asset managers to clearly identify and execute strategic growth opportunities. Our goal with The State of the U.S. Retail and Institutional Markets is to provide asset managers with a complete and comprehensive overview of areas for entrance and expansion with a clear breakdown of assets, intermediaries, and channel dynamics.
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