Innovation and emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence and legal tech, are transforming the finance industry faster than ever before. In this episode, we present the second instalment of our three-part New Faces of Finance miniseries.

Joining us is Louisa Klouda, founder and CEO of Fenchurch Legal, who shares her perspective on how innovation is driving transformation in the litigation finance industry, and what unique opportunities are arising as a result.

Technology is not only streamlining processes, improving risk assessment and predicting outcomes in new ways, but it is also crucial for finance firms to balance innovation with stability. Klouda explains how firms managing complex portfolios can leverage technology to enhance security as well as how innovation can pave the way for new tools and capabilities. Additionally, she discusses key trends that finance professionals should focus on, particularly when it comes to building AI models for smarter, data-driven investment decisions.

This episode is sponsored by Evercore, Davis Polk and Dawson Partners and first appeared on Secondaries Investor's Second Thoughts podcast

The secondaries market sits at a crossroads. Never before have LPs been presented with such an array of different liquidity offerings to back. There are specialised secondaries funds focusing on healthcare, on impact investing, on real assets in Asia or on acquiring direct minority equity stakes in companies in India. There are funds focusing on writing large cheques to multi-billion-dollar single-asset continuation funds; and there are funds focusing on making late primary commitments to buyout funds that are still in their fundraising mode. In short, if you’re an LP looking to back a secondaries fund, you’re spoiled for choice.

In this special episode, we sit down with Nigel Dawn, global head of Evercore's Private Capital Advisory group; Leor Landa, head of the investment management practice at Davis Polk; and Yann Robard, managing partner at Dawson Partners. We discuss why the performance of continuation funds is key to the further growth and branching out of this part of the market, and why the market is undergoing the fastest pace of innovation it has ever seen.

Mentorship is a critical driver of success in finance, especially in Africa, where diverse talent pipelines and investment challenges shape the industry. In this episode, we begin our three-part New Faces of Finance miniseries.

Joining us is Doris Odit Achenga, founder of Odit Frontier Partners, who shares her insights on fostering emerging talent, navigating investment landscapes and the role of mentorship in building a sustainable private equity ecosystem.

No development has impacted the private equity market over the past year like the rise of semi-liquid and evergreen funds. Semi-liquid/evergreen funds are similar to mutual funds in that investors can buy in one day, sell another day and access a seeded portfolio from the moment capital is invested.

GPs seemed to launch some kind of semi-liquid fund on a weekly basis last year, with ICG, Pantheon, Coller Capital and Ardian being examples of firms that launched or said they would launch such vehicles last year.

In this episode, we sit down with Richard Hope, co-head of investments at global asset manager Hamilton Lane, to discuss semi-liquid funds and why they're one of the hottest topics in private markets.

This episode is sponsored by Nuveen and Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners

The state of renewable energy is a series of contradictions. On the one hand, solar panels are cheaper, but they may not stay that way with the threat of tariffs from the incoming Trump Administration. Distributed energy and behind-the-meter power generation are promising, but there are persistent structural obstacles, especially around microgrids. Meanwhile, AI projects require more and more energy while so many grids are already struggling to meet current needs.  

So what does this mean for energy investors today? Will the Trump Administration curb progress on renewables in favour of fossil fuels, or will energy demands boost every alternative available? Where are the opportunities worth pursuing and what technologies are living up to their promise?

In this episode, we’ll discuss these questions and more with Don Dimitrievich, the senior managing director and portfolio manager for energy infrastructure credit at Nuveen, and David Scaysbrook, a co-founder and managing partner of Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners.

This episode first appeared on The Infrastructure Investor Podcast on 9 January 2025

What does it take for new teams – first-time GPs and spin-out GPs – to succeed in today’s environment? That's a question we put to Warren Hibbert, founder and managing partner at Asante Capital, a placement agent and advisory firm.

Asante has raised capital for firms including GRO Capital, eevolve, Maguar Capital Partners and Artá Capital. The firm was the second-most active placement agent for private equity emerging manager capital-raising in Private Equity International's Placement Agent Ranking 2024, having helped sponsors raise $2.21 billion in capital over the relevant period.

In this episode, Hibbert discusses how to set a target for a first-time fund, why track record and team cohesion are critical, and why emerging managers in today's environment need to hold a one-and-done final close.

California Public Employees' Retirement System, the US's largest public pension, last year introduced to its board a radically different method of investing: the total portfolio approach.

TPA has already been adopted by multiple sovereign investors around the world, including Australia's Future Fund and the New Zealand Superannuation Fund.

In this episode, PEI Group Hong Kong bureau chief Alex Lynn sits down with Doug Bell, investment strategy director at NZ Super, to discuss the benefits and disadvantages of TPAs when constructing a private equity portfolio capable of delivering long-term results.

NZ Super has NZ$80.4 billion ($46 billion; €44 billion) in assets under management and is now led by two new co-CIOs. It began the process of rebuilding its buyouts portfolio from scratch this year.

This episode is sponsored by Golub Capital

Private credit has enjoyed massive growth for more than a decade, but there are real questions about what happens when conditions are less favourable. How can lenders that launched during the good times continue to succeed when the market changes?

David Golub of Golub Capital knows from experience. Golub Capital was founded 30 years ago and has performed well in all kinds of market conditions. One of Golub Capital’s strengths involves a ’good boring’ approach, which aims to minimise the excitement of market swings and focus on delivering consistently for its stakeholders.

In this episode, David discusses Golub Capital's founding and its evolution through the financial crisis and the pandemic. We'll look at how cultivating close, long-term relationships with sponsors can improve every stage of the deal process, and why remaining focused on companies in resilient sectors where the firm has deep expertise has helped Golub Capital remain consistent, even in times of ‘bad interesting’.

This episode is sponsored by Nuveen and Igneo Infrastructure Partners

With the American electorate recently handing the White House back to Donald Trump, it seems like an opportune time to unpack what it could all mean for the infrastructure asset class – in particular, the US commitment to renewables and the energy transition. Trump is, after all, the man who previously removed the world’s largest economy from the Paris Climate Accord and has since sounded less than supportive of President Biden’s initiatives to stimulate the economy and create jobs through a series of infra-led federal legislation.

So, is the Inflation Reduction Act in danger of being repealed? Does global capital have cause to be jittery? Or is the case for renewables infrastructure now simply too strong for even a sceptical Trump-led administration to deny.

Helping us to address these questions and concerns are John Ma, a partner and co-head of Igneo Infrastructure Partners’ North America team, and Don Dimitrievich, the senior managing director and portfolio manager for energy infrastructure credit at Nuveen.

Please enjoy this crossover episode from Secondaries Investor's Second Thoughts podcast, which recently moved to its own channel. To continue getting new episodes, subscribe at secondariesinvestor.com/podcast or search for Secondaries Investor's Second Thoughts wherever you like to listen.

It's common to peel back the onion on key events and trends seen across financial markets. As the secondaries market heads for what is predicted to be a record-setting year for volume, we decided to practice the phrase quite literally.

Madeleine Farman, senior reporter and host of the Second Thoughts, and senior editor Adam Le are joined by Carlo Pirzio-Biroli, head of CVC Secondary Partners, and Ted Cardos, co-head of Kirkland & Ellis's European liquidity solutions team, with the group letting a basket of onions decide the talking points.

Pirzio-Biroli and Cardos discuss key wins, disappointments and developments over the course of 2024 and what the next 12 months could bring for the secondaries market.