Directed IRA Podcast How to Find, Vet, and Invest in Private Funds with a SDIRA (ft. Bridger Pennington)
Apr 7, 2026
Bridger Pennington, founder and CEO of Fund Launch and private fund operator, walks through finding, vetting, and investing in private funds. He covers access paths including self-directed IRAs. Topics include building deal flow, due diligence like audits and fund admins, fee alignment, vintage-year timing, and how to evaluate emerging managers and asset classes.
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Why Private Funds Expand Investment Access
- Private funds give retail investors access to nonpublic assets like SpaceX, Stripe, real estate, and private credit that aren't available on public markets.
- Managers are typically niche experts (e.g., Southeastern multifamily) who run deals and investors get upside while limiting liability as limited partners.
Create A Big Deal Funnel Before Committing
- Build a wide funnel: use PitchBook, AI, networking, and tell your network you have capital so deals start finding you.
- Review 10–100 opportunities and distill to 1–2 commitments like a family office does.
Friend's 11 Bad Bets Then One Good Fund
- Bridger recounts a friend who made 11 poor investments before finding Bridger's fund to illustrate due diligence failures.
- The friend had 12 investments; Bridger's was the only one that stood up because it met audit and admin criteria.