Building on the success of the author’s previous book Beyond the J Curve:Managing a Portfolio of Venture Capital and Private Equity Funds, this work covers new and additional material and offers advanced guidance on the practical questions faced by institutions when setting up and managing a successful private equity investment programme. Written from the practitioner’s viewpoint, the book offers private equity and venture capital professionals an advanced guide that will make high return targets more realistic and sustainable. Factors that can sometimes cause institutions to shy away from venture capital are the industry’s opaque track record, unclear valuations and risks, perceived lack of transparency as well as the significant entry barriers to overcome before tangible results show. These issues are all addressed in details with practical solutions to the problems. Among other topics J-Curve Exposure includes discussions of: Experiences with the adoption of the International Private Equity and Venture Capital Valuation Guidelines to address fair value under IFRS. Approaches for splitting and prioritizing distributions from private equity funds. Techniques for track record analysis and other tools to help limited partners in their due diligence. Approaches to dealing with uncertainty, the relevance of real options, and co-investments and side funds as advanced portfolio management techniques. Questions related to limited partner decision making fallacies and how to manage portfolios of VC funds. Securitization backed by portfolios of investments in private equity funds. Real life case studies illustrate the issues relevant for the practitioner.

In recent times, venture capital and private equity funds have become household names, but so far little has been written for the investors in such funds, the so-called limited partners. There is far more to the management of a portfolio of venture capital and private equity funds than usually perceived. Beyond the J Curve describes an innovative toolset for such limited partners to design and manage portfolios tailored to the dynamics of this market place, going far beyond the typical and often-simplistic recipe to 'go for top quartile funds'. Beyond the J Curve provides the answers to key questions, including: Why 'top-quartile' promises should be taken with a huge pinch of salt and what it takes to select superior fund managers? What do limited partners need to consider when designing and managing portfolios? How one can determine the funds' economic value to help addressing the questions of 'fair value' under IAS 39 and 'risk' under Basel II or Solvency II? Why is monitoring important, and how does a limited partner manage his portfolio? How the portfolio's returns can be improved through proper liquidity management and what to consider when over-committing? And, why uncertainty rather than risk is an issue and how a limited partner can address and benefit from the fast changing private equity environment? Beyond the J Curve takes the practitioner's view and offers private equity and venture capital professionals a comprehensive guide making high return targets more realistic and sustainable. This book is a must have for all parties involved in this market, as well as academic and students.

"How can institutional and private investors safely invest into private equity? Two experienced market practitioners provide you with a review of the private equity fund industry and a description of all the relevant management issues of fund investments, from a day-to-day and a portfolio persepective to indirect investment vehicles like funds of funds and securitised notes. Learn how to think independently and avoid succumbing to the traps of private equity. This book includes: A discussion of private equity as an asset class and its place within an alternative investment programme. Guidance on investment into funds, including a behind-the-scenes look at the relationship between the fund investor and the fund manager. Portfolio management of fund investments including the latest cash-flow models and their use to avoid liquidity squeezes and over-allocation. An examination of the different types of risks faced by private equity investors and how these can be minimised. An explanation of how investors can outsource these tasks - the relative merits of funds of funds and CFOs, listed products or secondary transactions. This is the first book to discuss the relationship between the limited partners and the general partner, providing an undisguised and independent look behind the scenes, and explain the core aspects of this industry from the perspective of two insiders. An indispensable reference for institutional practitioners and private equity lawyers, as well as students and academics who seek to understand the dynamics of the complex world of private equity."--Editor.

A predictable pattern of success Entrepreneurs who have read early drafts of The Start-Up J Curve responded, ''I wish I had this book years ago.'' A start-up unfolds in a predictable pattern; the more aware entrepreneurs are of this pattern, the better able they will be to capitalize on it. Author Howard Love calls this pattern the start-up J Curve: The toughest part of the endeavor is the time between the actual start of a new business and when the product and model are firmly established. The Start-Up J Curve gives entrepreneurs the tools they need to get through the early challenges so they can reach the primary value creation that lies beyond. Love brings thirty-five years of start-up experience to this comprehensive guide to starting a business. He outlines the six predictable stages of start-up growth and details the activities that should be undertaken at each stage to ensure success and to avoid common pitfalls. Instead of feeling lost and confused after a setback, start-up founders and investors can anticipate the challenges, overcome the obstacles, and ride the curve to the top.

Arms investors with powerful new tools for measuring and managing the risks associated with the various illiquid asset classes With risk-free interest rates and risk premiums at record lows, many investors are turning to illiquid assets, such as real estate, private equity, infrastructure and timber, in search of superior returns and greater portfolio diversity. But as many analysts, investors and wealth managers are discovering, such investments bring with them a unique set of risks that cannot be measured by standard asset allocation models. Written by a dream team of globally renowned experts in the field, this book provides a clear, accessible overview of illiquid fund investments, focusing on what the main risks of these asset classes are and how to measure those risks in today's regulatory environment. Provides solutions for institutional investors in need of guidance in today's regulatory environment Offers detailed descriptions of risk measurement in illiquid asset classes, illustrated with real life case studies Helps you to develop reliable risk management tools while complying with the regulations designed to contain the individual and systemic risks arising from illiquid investments Features real-life case studies that capture an array of risk management scenarios you are likely to encounter

CAIA Association has developed two examinations that are used to certify Chartered Alternative Investment Analysts. The Level I curriculum builds a foundation in both traditional and alternative investment markets--for example, the range of statistics that are used to define investment performance as well as the many types of hedge fund strategies. The readings for the Level II exam focus on the same strategies, but change the context to one of risk management and portfolio optimization. Level II CAIA exam takers have to work through the following agenda: asset allocation & portfolio oversight style analysis risk management alternative asset securitization secondary market creation performance and style attribution indexation and benchmarking