New York (HedgeCo.net) – Rothstein Kass has released “Women in Alternative Investments – Industry Outlook and Trends,” a new report focused on trends impacting core business functions at alternative investment firms.

The research features the investment and operational insights gained through a third quarter survey of 189 executive-level women investing capital through hedge funds, private equity funds or venture capital funds. The report highlights the industry, capital-raising and investment insights of women fund managers and explores whether gender impacts core business functions such as capital-raising.

Findings indicate that while nearly 70 percent of respondents anticipate that the next 18 months will be challenging for the industry, they are more optimistic about investment outlook and new fund launches within that same period. Nearly 65 percent of respondents are confident that there will be attractive investment opportunities, and slightly more than half of respondents indicated that they plan to launch a new investment fund within the next 18 months.

“Over the past decade, there has been a significant increase in the number of successful women in the alternative investment community. Women have attained leadership roles in every niche and have added to the rich diversity of the hedge fund, private equity and venture capital sectors, to the benefit of investors and partners.  These women are having a major impact on the direction of the industry,” said Kelly Easterling, a Principal in the Financial Services Practice at Rothstein Kass and Principal-in-Charge of the Firm’s Walnut Creek office.

Most survey respondents believe it is more difficult for women-run funds to attract capital. Slightly more than 40 percent of respondents believe capital-raising is more difficult for women-run funds because women often lack the investment track record their male peers have. About a third of respondents believe that women’s capital-raising efforts are hindered by the stereotype that women are more committed to family and personal responsibilities than their career. Slightly over 30 percent believe it is harder for women to raise capital because they have less access to investor networks.

Other notable findings include:

• Nearly 70 percent of the women surveyed expect the next 18 months to be more difficult than the preceding period.  In spite of this, slightly over 60 percent of survey respondents anticipate an increase in new fund launches over the same period.
• Although most respondents believe fund launches will increase in the next 18 months, respondents were divided as to whether more women would participate in these launches. Yet more than half of our survey respondents are planning to introduce a new fund themselves in the next 18 months.
• Over 70 percent of respondents plan to raise capital in the next 18 months.
• Family offices (52 percent), pension funds (52 percent), high-net worth individuals (50 percent), foundations (41 percent) and endowments (35 percent) are seen as most likely sources of new capital. Sovereign wealth funds (25 percent) and “other foreign sources of capital” (18 percent) were also viewed as significant sources of capital.
• In an uncertain economic climate, over 65 percent of participants are confident that there will be attractive investment opportunities in the next 18 months.
• A majority of respondents expect terms for new capital to be less favorable to fund managers in the next 18 months.
• To help facilitate women’s advancement in the industry, respondents noted that women need greater access to roles which enable them to establish an investment track record, more women need to be recruited into the industry, and institutional investors should consider women’s representation in investment roles when making allocations.

The report also identifies the factors most critical to respondents’ success in the industry. The most important factors were having a strong professional network, having strong mentoring relationships, willingness to take risks, strategic career planning, and strong support networks.

“One of the goals of 85 Broads is to use our platform to match great ideas with great talent,” explainedJanet Hanson, Founder and CEO of 85 Broads.  “In recent years, we’ve seen greater numbers of senior-level women strategically investing significant capital in start-up companies and funds led by women.  Senior women are making these investments, in ventures often led by young women, not out of an obligation to give back or for charitable purposes, but because they are investing in real talent.  I think this trend will continue, and that we’ll see more women with capital investing in funds directly.  This is an encouraging development for the industry as a whole.”

Editing by Alex Akesson
For HedgeCo.net
alex@hedgeco.net
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