The current market environment continues to push institutional investors into alternative assets, seeking both yield and diversification, but not all options are created equal. Hedge funds, according to JP Morgan’s alternative asset outlook, will gain further traction as new technologies capture investor attention in 2020. “As tech spending continues across industries, our managers anticipate opportunities as […]
While the amount of alternative assets in institutional portfolios is holding relatively steady, the type of investments making up allocations to alternatives are shifting. Current allocations to alternatives rose just one per cent to 25 per cent since 2018, according to the latest research from EY. While hedge funds remain the largest contributor to the […]
While year-end incentive payments have been on the rise over the past few years, 2019 could be different. Analysis from Johnson Associates, Inc., a compensation consulting firm, found Wall Street year-end incentive pay, including cash bonuses and equity awards, is expected to decline by five per cent for 2019, compared to last year. “All signs […]
There are many reasons for pension plans to consider exposure to liquid alternatives, but the first step is understanding the asset class. Simply, liquid alternatives are alternative assets, such as currency, commodities or emerging market debt, which are available in liquid forms, as well as alternative strategies like long-short investment strategies, says Michael Sager, vice-president […]
It might seem like hedge fund managers having “skin in the game” by investing personal capital in their funds would be a good thing for outside investors seeking to enter positions alongside them. But there can be negative consequences, according to a paper co-authored by Arpit Gupta, an assistant professor of finance at the Leonard […]
It turns out institutional investors can learn a lot about hedge funds by paying attention to their writing style. In fact, when looking at hedge funds’ strategy descriptions, the sophistication of the text can be telling, according to a new research paper. “It seems that even for sophisticated entities such as hedge funds — that […]
Among institutional investors that are diving into alternative assets, those investing in private equity are the most satisfied, according to a new survey by Preqin Ltd. The vast majority (93 per cent) of survey respondents said their private equity funds’ performance has either met or exceeded expectations in the last 12 months. Investors are also […]
Fund managers’ race appears to play a role in whether they’re selected by asset allocators, such as pension funds, according to a new report. The report, by Illumen Capital and a centre from Stanford University’s department of psychology, found racially diverse teams may face bigger barriers to advancement, even after they’ve established themselves as strong […]
About four in 10 (41 per cent) hedge fund managers are considering environmental, social and governance factors in their allocation decisions, according to a new survey by BarclayHedge Ltd. Among this group, 52 per cent of assets are currently allocated based on ESG ratings. Last year, that number was 42 per cent and it’s projected to jump […]
Since standard banks began to shy away from their traditional financing role after the 2008 financial crisis, institutional investors have helped maintain markets by becoming increasingly important providers of long-term capital. Historically low interest rates also pushed these sovereign wealth and pension funds away from the traditional fixed income bedrock of their portfolios into a bevy […]