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Putting innovation into practice
Historically, endowments and foundations have been viewed as ‘ahead of the curve’ on a number of themes—such as the use of private equity and other alternative investment strategies. The combination of a long-term investment horizon, relative regulatory freedom and innovation-friendly governance structures continues to be a powerful one.
Today, we continue to see foundation and endowment investors seeking to advance and enhance portfolios with new developments—such as exploring esoteric investment strategies that have not yet reached the institutional mainstream, driving ‘impact investment’ product development and uncovering unfamiliar/emerging managers.
Supporting the needs of foundations and endowments
Endowments and foundations represent a very significant proportion of bfinance’s client base. Acting as an extension of their teams, we offer flexible support in a range of areas. The most popular service for these investors during recent years has been manager research and selection: the bfinance process has helped these clients to research strategies, acquire market knowledge and uncover a broad range of solutions.
Other key services for our endowment and foundation clients include strategic portfolio design / strategic asset allocation, fee reviews, risk analytics, ESG advisory and operational due diligence. The majority of endowment/foundation clients have appointed bfinance to provide targeted support on a project basis (e.g. 8-12 weeks); long-term support is also available.
Latest case studies
US/Canada Equity, Dividend Focus
This investor sought to switch from passive strategies towards active management, with the primary...
Portfolio Solutions – Strategic Portfolio Design, Real Estate and Infrastructure
This German endowment fund engaged bfinance to review its current real estate and infrastructure...
Market-Independent Absolute Return
This investor sought market-independent strategies which exhibit very limited equity / credit beta...
ESG/Impact Maritime Leasing
The client, a UK endowment fund with strong environmental, social and governance (ESG)...
Our latest articles and white papers
Latest Insights Carousel
Rise of the Allocators: Multi-manager Strategies for Alternative Investing
Powerful forces have supported the growth and evolution of multi-manager models for ‘alternative’...
Recessions, Rising Rates and Received Wisdom in Fixed Income Investing
In a time of macroeconomic upheaval, bfinance’s fixed income team examines three popular beliefs...
Manager Intelligence and Market Trends - May 2023
bfinance’s quarterly report in May 2023: read the team’s latest insights on institutional investor...
How Alternative Investing is Evolving at Denmark's Velliv
Next month will mark five years since Velliv (formerly Nordea Liv and Pension, Denmark) left its...
Small Cap Equities: Time for Targeted Exposure?
Following a fundamental shift in macroeconomic conditions, we weigh up the attractions of small...
Multi-Strategy Hedge Funds - Sector in Brief
Multi-strategy hedge funds are currently under the spotlight following recent strong performance....
'Impact' in Private Equity: What Is Best Practice?
The ‘impact’ private equity sector is rapidly growing and maturing. Yet it is far from...
Are Equity Long/Short Managers Meeting Investors’ ESG and Climate Needs?
Equity long/short strategies are ahead of the curve on ESG and carbon emissions versus their hedge...
Manager Intelligence and Market Trends - February 2023
bfinance’s quarterly report in February 2023: read the team’s latest insights on institutional...
Commodities - Sector in Brief
Fewer than a quarter of institutional asset owners invest directly in commodities, according to...
