Formulary: Disrupting the Fund Administration Industry
Turning fund administration into a strategic advantage for investors
The fund administration industry relies on 20th-century workflows and processes to meet the 21st-century needs of GPs and LPs. As the complexity of alternative assets grows, investors are increasingly strained by legacy systems, manual workarounds, and a persistent lack of data accuracy. We believe the industry is at an inflection point and ripe for AI-led disruption.
At Acrew, we believe in being early backers of category-defining disruptors that can transform legacy industries through AI orchestration and unified technology. As fund managers ourselves, we have experienced firsthand the friction of traditional fund administration. It is a space where existing solutions are no longer fit for purpose, and GPs have been forced to “learn to live” with subpar service and inconsistent record-keeping. The Acrew team has been searching for a partner capable of harnessing the full potential of technology to break the status quo and redefine what is possible in private market operations.
When we met Formulary, we knew we had found the answer.
The Team Behind Formulary
From our initial meeting with Alfia Ilicheva (Founder and CEO), it was evident that she and the team have a differentiated approach. With a founding team that comes from Bridgewater Associates, Meta, and leading fund administrators, they bring rare insight and technical depth across applied AI, data systemization, and fund accounting — a strategic advantage that is difficult to replicate. Additionally, she has been able to recruit senior advisors from leading asset management firms, and this signaled to us strong founder‑market fit and early ecosystem pull.
A New Kind of Fund Administration Partner
For Formulary, what began as fixing the underlying fundamentals — embedding data systemization to ensure data accuracy and access — has evolved into reimagining how a modern fund administrator should operate.
Three capabilities set Formulary apart. First, an AI-native process orchestration engine that streamlines accounting workflows and captures institutional knowledge across GPs and LPs, eliminating delays and “key person” risk. Second, tailored, high-touch service delivered by dedicated fund accounting experts and anchored in data-driven insights for investors. Third, robust data capabilities that expose the full lineage of every number and logic path back to source documents and artifacts, establishing a shared source of truth across GPs, LPs, and third-party partners.
For asset managers like ourselves, this combination is particularly compelling as we seek to harness the power of our data, scale our teams, and uncover new opportunities for growth. From day one, Formulary’s ambition to eliminate the “shadow book” burden stood out. The results and client feedback make it clear that Formulary is driving meaningful gains in operational efficiency, data integrity, and GP–LP relationships.
What’s Ahead
The commercial opportunity is significant and growing. Private markets represent over $20 trillion in AUM, and the market spend on fund administration services is poised to double to $25 billion by 2033. Within this category, Formulary already supports firms managing billions in assets and is experiencing rapid growth as the industry shifts toward AI-native operations.
We are especially excited by the team’s disciplined focus on trust, excellence, and customer centricity. They are deeply committed to integrity in every aspect of the business and uncompromising in ensuring client priorities remain at the heart of every decision. This rigor has already enabled them to become trusted partners to many leading investment firms.
We are proud to support Formulary’s latest funding round alongside Khosla Ventures, Company Ventures, Serena Ventures, and others. This new capital will accelerate the development of proprietary AI tooling and expand Formulary’s team of accountants and technologists.