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Preparing for, taking, and passing the CAIA exams is challenging, and for good reason! A CAIA Charterholder represents a demonstrated level of competency and an unwavering commitment to a set of ethical standards critical for client-focused fiduciaries.

CAIA Curriculum, Steven Novakovic, CAIA, CFA, and Director of Candidate and Member Relations, Mirjam Dekker provided this exclusive opportunity for you to ask any questions about taking the CAIA exam.

In this fireside chat, Corey Hoffstein CEO and CIO of Newfound Research, joined Steve Novakovic to talk all things factors. From the Fama-French three factor model to TPA, the identification and use of factors have evolved and grown over the last several decades. Corey helped investors understand what are factors, why should investors care about factors, how do investors use factors, how do investors get exposure to factors?

Following an exceptional run in 2021 and early 2022, the SPAC market cooled off through 2023. We are starting to see a return to normalcy and renewed activity with SPACs. In this market check-in webcast, we connected with Nick Skibo of Gritstone Asset Management, Tom Hennessy of Hennessy Capital Growth Partners, and Douglas Ellenoff of Ellenoff Grossman & Schole LLP, to discuss the state of the market for SPACs and the opportunity set for investors.

The CAIA Virtual Chapter is pleased to welcome Kate Lynch, Managing Partner at Estate Barrels. Kate spoke about investing in aged bourbon, a niche investment opportunity. Learn from her about the growth and size of the industry, the historical market, and investing pitfalls to avoid.

Thomas Meyer discussed his new book and, together with Jacob Perner, explained how the concepts presented can be applied to the management of private asset portfolios.

The first few years of the 2020s have either presented real estate investors with significant challenges or wonderful opportunities - it all really depends on what kind of real estate you own. A global pandemic, multi-decade high inflation, interest rate shocks, and sustainability have created significant dispersion between the winners and losers of commercial real estate. As we leave some of these significant disruptions, what is the path forward? In this panel discussion, we presented and discussed some of the largest trends real estate investors can expect in the coming months and years.

This event looked in-depth at structuring a private credit portfolio – key building blocks, such as direct lending, asset-based finance, real estate debt, capital solutions, etc. – and how to ‘optimize’ these to achieve a desired risk/return objective. We heard from top investors, consultants and managers in this space. Through this event, we tackled the key questions that are top-of-mind for investors, such as when or whether to lever a direct lending allocation, when to diversify geographically, the rise of asset-based finance, preparing a portfolio to take advantage of market dislocations, and more.

Replicating hedge fund returns is not necessarily a strategy, but has become an interesting avenue for investors seeking exposure to hedge fund beta with high liquidity, low fees, and low investment minimums. However, the replication process can be done in several ways and not everything can be replicated. This panel discussion covered some approaches to replication, the trade-offs of replication vs investing in underlying funds, and the impact of the wrapper on implementation and performance.

A handful of institutional investors have broken the mold when it comes to asset allocation and portfolio construction across public and private markets. By re-imagining the investment process, the role certain asset classes and strategies fit into a portfolio, many have unlocked an attractive return stream relative to other institutions. We captured some of these examples in a recent report, Innovation Unleased: The Rise of the Total Portfolio Approach, and a common question has been - how might these tenants apply in wealth management?

Moderator Aaron Filbeck, UniFi by CAIA, was joined by esteemed panelists Carlin Calcaterra from Ares Wealth Management Solutions, Tony Davidow from Franklin Templeton, Patrick McGowan from Sanctuary Wealth and Shana Sissel, Banrion Capital for an engaging presentation with an introduction to the Total Portfolio Approach, panel discussion and questions answered.