Category: 101
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Asset Allocation 101: I got a fever, and the only prescription is more
cowbellequities.
Look, we’re lovers, not fighters. Never mind the claims that hedge funds are “dead as a doornail” to UHNW investors in the media recently—we have a lot of respect for the person they interviewed, and they clearly know a lot about what UHNW investors are thinking about when it comes…
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Asset Allocation 101: Getting your equity allocation “right”
What’s in a name? The question of how to categorize private equity and whether it belongs to the realm of “alternative investments” might strike some as ‘stupid’ but it isn’t just a matter of semantics. It’s actually pretty important. This isn’t just about labels; it’s about accurately assessing and managing…
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Asset Allocation 101: The ‘Ivy League’ Model isn’t a Fit for Individuals
Remembering our Core Principles Let’s just get this out of the way. Yes, we believe most of your clients could benefit from an allocation to alternative investments. No, we don’t think many of the new entrants in this industry take your clients’ best interests into account when they pitch you…
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Due Diligence 101: Not Even a G.D.’d Google Search?
It’s usually the first thing people do when they’re researching a new pair of shoes or a new restaurant or something. How, then, can someone not even do a basic Google search on the key principals of a fund or investment platform they’re considering investing in or partnering with? How,…
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Due Diligence 101: Upholding Rigor Against a Tide of Compromise
This is how it should be done. With alternative investments, manager selection is crucial to success, and due diligence is the cornerstone of this process. As we’ve discussed in previous articles, far from being a simple checklist or rubber-stamp formality, due diligence is an in-depth exploration of a manager’s operations,…
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Due Diligence 101: Best-in-Class?
Reality Check Call us old-fashioned if you want, but in our view, every movie isn’t Oscar-worthy, every kid doesn’t deserve a gold medal just for participating, and every fund manager isn’t ‘best-in-class’—sorry. While we appreciate their optimism, just making the claim in marketing materials doesn’t make it so. Like we’ve…
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Regulatory & Compliance 101: Looking Beyond Diversification to Potential Tax Benefits of Investing in Liquid Hedge Funds.
Exposition: A Financial Advisor’s Peculiar Interest in Tax Code We once heard a story about a financial advisor who always traveled with the latest edition of the U.S. Master Tax Guide. They liked to spend their travel time looking for obscure benefits and potential breaks for their clients. It may…
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Due Diligence 101: The Front Line of Alternative Investment Success
LTCM, Amaranth Advisors, Madoff, Galleon—these are just a few of the due diligence horror stories older alternative investment professionals tell junior analysts at after-work cocktail hours to school them. Unfortunately for a number of investors, including some of the world’s most sophisticated institutions, these were more than just stories. The…