Fund Admin Forum by PEF Services

While private equity allocations proved resilient through the pandemic-related market turbulence of 2020, there is little doubt that this turbulence has had a notable and lasting impact on alternative asset investment. 

Investors today are looking beyond investment returns and making decisions based on a broader set of factors that encompass risk mitigation and the investor experience. Inevitably, this is changing how general partners plan for and think about the fundraising process.

We talked to Anne Anquillare, Head of US Fund Services for PEF Services, a CSC company, to find out how the fundraising process is shifting to meet investors’ broader set of evaluation criteria. 

Investing is about returns.  And in private equity, the waterfall dictates how those returns are distributed to investors.  Unfortunately, it seems that many investors still aren't paying enough attention to this important calculation.  What’s holding them back?

Over the past 20 years, the number of emerging managers has increased steadily, and looking at their performance, it’s easy to see why. Even in a high-performing asset class, emerging managers have earned a reputation for offering above average returns, and many provide unique opportunities to those investors with a mandate to invest in underrepresented and emerging talent.

A growing number of General Partners have turned to outsourced fund administration to better manage their back office. But the number of General Partners who are dissatisfied with their current fund administrator relationship and are switching providers is also on the rise. What are the issues, and how can they be avoided the second time around?  

As the industry faces one of the greatest disruptions in its history, having some level of market transparency is vital when communicating and reporting back to investors. By leveraging existing standards and communication tools, along with adopting new solutions, investment firms can improve their transparency during these challenging times.

Understanding Portco valuations, relative to the key metrics and data points, is something that every company should consider. This audio blog discusses how to develop a company “watch list” process that is scalable, along with the opportunity created when removing barriers to advance in the industry.

Understanding how to navigate the new normal is vital, especially when going through the valuation process at the fund level. This audio blog highlights the topic of PortCo valuations and metrics while explaining why the methods used to value private companies should stay intact, even during unstable times.