WELCOME TO OUR MONTHLY NEWSLETTER.
The source for navigating the world of alternative investments
Private Markets & Hedge Fund Strategy Ratings Report
We’ve just started 2025, and we expect higher volatility in public markets. Historically, however, alternatives have often delivered lower volatility and better risk-adjusted returns. Our semi-annual ratings update across different private market and hedge fund investment strategies reflects several changes.
The Research Team is upgrading late-stage venture capital and event-driven hedge fund strategies based on our upbeat capital markets outlook. Within real assets, we think the current cycle of broad property value depreciation has troughed, leading us to upgrade core real estate to a Neutral. And on the cautious side, with spreads hovering near historically tight levels for several credit asset classes and fewer special situations opportunities, we’re downgrading credit hedge fund strategies and distressed debt.
To read our opinions on each of the major asset classes or strategies, please reference the Private Markets & Hedge Fund Strategy Ratings – Semi-Annual Report.
To learn more about the private market investment opportunities available at iCapital, please contact our sales team at [email protected], and visit the iCapital Marketplace.
Thank you for your continued partnership and support.
Dan Vene
Co-Founder and Managing Partner,
Co-Head of iCapital Solutions
CHART OF THE MONTH
NEW FROM iCAPITAL
iCapital Acquires Parallel Markets
We have exciting news! iCapital has acquired Parallel Markets, a leader in reusable financial identity, providing a scalable, end-to-end solution for investor onboarding, verification, and monitoring. This acquisition is intended to enable faster onboarding, reduced costs, and a more efficient investment process.
Mastering AI: The Future of Client Relationships Meets the Power of AI
Webinar: Tuesday, February 11 | 1PM ET
Join Lara Shackelford, iCapital and Ian J. Karnell, VastAdvisor for a workshop-style panel discussion on the convergence of financial advisory practices and AI. Learn how AI-powered marketing tools can help streamline operations, enhance personalization and drive growth.
BEYOND 60/40
Sports Investing
In this episode, Anastasia Amoroso shares the growing private equity opportunity with the global sports market, currently worth $460 billion, expected to nearly double by 2030, according to Houlihan Lokey. Then, listen to Anastasia’s conversation with Marc Lasry, Co-Founder, CEO, & Chairman of Avenue Capital Group, as they discuss emerging sports opportunities.
MONTHLY MARKET ROUNDUP
Within this article, Ares identifies three major themes: 1) The importance of pre-planning for inherited real estate, 2) Identifying the options: liquidation and reinvesting after-tax proceeds versus liquidating into real estate exchange, and 3) Evaluating the options: the economic value of staying in real estate.
Ken Caplan, Co-Chief Investment Officer of Blackstone, discusses how Blackstone aims to be at the forefront of the megatrends shaping the future, including artificial intelligence (AI), infrastructure, life sciences, consumer sectors and the evolution of India.
Adam Berger, CFA, Head of Multi-Asset Strategy at Wellington Management, updates his annual 10-step checklist to help allocators chart a path for the year ahead. He proposes a set of key takeaways including the near-term outlook, market consensus, possible surprises and several long-term themes.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Beyond 60/40: Managing Structured Products with Less Time and Effort
In this clip, Anastasia Amoroso and Steve Czick explain how separately managed accounts (SMAs) help advisors maintain strategic exposure to structured products while outsourcing the operational burden of managing individual notes, allowing for more focus on tactical investments and portfolio management.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
The material herein has been provided to you for informational purposes only by Institutional Capital Network, Inc. (“iCapital Network”) or one of its affiliates (iCapital Network together with its affiliates, “iCapital”). This material is the property of iCapital and may not be shared without the written permission of iCapital. No part of this material may be reproduced in any form, or referred to in any other publication, without express written permission of iCapital.
This material is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended as, and may not be relied on in any manner as, legal, tax or investment advice, a recommendation, or as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any security, financial product or instrument, or otherwise to participate in any particular trading strategy. This material does not intend to address the financial objectives, situation, or specific needs of any individual investor. You should consult your personal accounting, tax, and legal advisors to understand the implications of any investment specific to your personal financial situation.
ALTERNATIVE INVESTMENTS ARE CONSIDERED COMPLEX PRODUCTS AND MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR ALL INVESTORS. Prospective investors should be aware that an investment in an alternative investment is speculative and involves a high degree of risk. Alternative investments often engage in leveraging and other speculative investment practices that may increase the risk of investment loss; can be highly illiquid; may not be required to provide periodic pricing or valuation information to investors; may involve complex tax structures and delays in distributing important tax information; are not subject to the same regulatory requirements as mutual funds; and often charge high fees. There is no guarantee that an alternative investment will implement its investment strategy and/or achieve its objectives, generate profits, or avoid loss. An investment should only be considered by sophisticated investors who can afford to lose all or a substantial amount of their investment.
iCapital Markets LLC operates a platform that makes available financial products to financial professionals. In operating this platform, iCapital Markets LLC generally earns revenue based on the volume of transactions that take place in these products and would benefit by an increase in sales for these products.
The information contained herein is an opinion only, as of the date indicated, and should not be relied upon as the only important information available. Any prediction, projection or forecast on the economy, stock market, bond market, or the economic trends of the markets is not necessarily indicative of the future or likely performance. The information contained herein is subject to change, incomplete, and may include information and/or data obtained from third-party sources that iCapital believes, but does not guarantee, to be accurate. iCapital considers this third-party data reliable, but does not represent that it is accurate, complete and/or up to date, and it should not be relied on as such. iCapital makes no representation as to the accuracy or completeness of this material and accepts no liability for losses arising from the use of the material presented. No representation or warranty is made by iCapital as to the reasonableness or completeness of such forward-looking statements or to any other financial information contained herein.
Securities products and services are offered by iCapital Markets, an SEC-registered broker-dealer, member FINRA and SIPC, and an affiliate of iCapital, Inc. and Institutional Capital Network, Inc. These registrations and memberships in no way imply that the SEC, FINRA, or SIPC have endorsed any of the entities, products, or services discussed herein. Annuities and insurance services are provided by iCapital Annuities and Insurance Services LLC, an affiliate of iCapital, Inc. “iCapital” and “iCapital Network” are registered trademarks of Institutional Capital Network, Inc. Additional information is available upon request.
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