When endowment funds slip “underwater” (below the historic dollar value of the original gift), institutions face a tradeoff between distributing anticipated budget support and restoring the endowment to its original value. Ultimately, the choice of underwater policy depends on the situation and needs of each institution in balancing endowment preservation with program support.
August 2016
With virtually limitless choices along the asset allocation spectrum, an allocation to private investments greater than 15% has served many investors well. Are you on the right track?
July 2016
Select hedge funds have provided attractive long-term returns with reduced equity beta and can be integral to pension investment strategies.
June 2016
To create the conditions for good governance, endowments should assess whether they have in place the appropriate model for portfolio oversight and management, are upholding their fiduciary responsibilities, and are learning about peer best practices in structure, process, policies, and role of the portfolio.
May 2016
Considering climate factors is an economic risk management and opportunity capitalization issue core to prudent investing for the long term. In this paper, we discuss the potential risks that climate change can inflict upon certain sectors and asset classes, outline corresponding strategies to defend against those risks, and review the thematic areas across public and private asset classes to proactively capitalize on the evolving opportunity set within the "resource efficiency" sector.
December 2015
The widely held belief that 90% of venture industry performance is generated by just the top ten firms is a catchy but unsupported claim that may lead investors to miss attractive opportunities with managers that can provide exposure to substantial value creation.
November 2015
Well-diligenced private investments in a skillfully constructed portfolio are important growth drivers that have helped pension funds deliver superior performance and increased the probability of meeting or exceeding long-term required returns.
October 2015
Whether investors are ready to admit it or not, sponsor-to-sponsor transactions—in which one private equity sponsor sells its stake in a company to another private equity sponsor—are here to stay, and that may not be a bad thing.
October 2015