About alternative solutions
about us
Alternative Solution was founded in 2017 and is a part of Carnegie Fonder AB since early 2023. Through an exclusive strategic partnership with Makena Capital Management, the asset manager can provide investors in the Nordic with a top-tier product.
Alternative Solutions consists of an experienced management team and is supported by an efficient organization focused on administration, risk and compliance.
THE PARTNERSHIP WITH MAKENA
Makena Capital Management, LLC was formed in 2005 by senior executives from the Stanford Management Company along with other leading practitioners from elite North American endowments and foundations. The fund manager offers investment expertise, scale and access to a diverse client base which includes endowments, foundations, family offices, sovereign wealth funds and international institutions focused on preserving and growing multigenerational capital. The Makena approach is based on investment disciplines pioneered by the leading North American university endowments and foundations. Makena made its first capital investment 2006.
investment process
The Investment process combines a bottom-up fundamental approach with a well-diversified portfolio designed to outperform prevailing market conditions.
Our process is based on six core principles:
Maintain a long-term focus
Maintaining a long-term focus is key to building high-quality, durable portfolios. Being a long-term investor requires the consistency, patience, and discipline to weather short-term market volatility without shifting strategy or portfolio positioning.
Being a long-term investor also allows use to build strong partnerships with extraordinary investment managers who demonstrate a sustainable edge in security selection and adding value to their portfolio companies and assets over full market cycles.
Play to our strengths
Elite performance in any field requires an understanding of one’s own strengths and vulnerabilities. Our investment philosophy is uncompromisingly bound to this understanding. Our core strength is our manager selection and access. Due to our industry network and reputation as a sought-after investment partner, we have a track record of accessing high-performing, capacity-constrained managers. This access is available through a variety of avenues, including co-investments.
Focus on capturing inefficiencies
Allocate capital to less efficient and often uncorrelated investment opportunities. By targeting less efficient markets, we aim to leverage potential inefficiencies that may be overlooked by the broader market, providing opportunities to enhance portfolio returns.
Maintain a value discipline
Investing with a long-term focus offers the advantage of maintaining conviction across market cycles. This conviction is rooted in our value discipline, which involves seeking to acquire high-quality assets at opportunistic valuations through fundamental, bottom-up analysis. While recognizing the inherent difficulty in timing markets, we believe in the importance of pricing. There are occasions when market reactions to variables lead to temporary disconnections between asset prices and their fundamental value. We acknowledge the inherent challenge of timing these market movements while emphasizing the enduring value of a steadfast, long-term investment approach.
Maintain balanced diversification.
Manager diversification is key to successfully managing inherent risk and also recognize that most managers and strategies undergo different cycles.
People Matter
Our most important core principle is that people matter; we focus on building a team of the right people and investing with the right people. In the process of manager selection and underwriting, our paramount investment criterion is the quality of the team and the individuals within it. We hold the belief that, especially in challenging decisions, choosing the right people ensures that the correct decisions will be made on behalf of our Limited Partners (LPs) and their capital.
Sustainability
Alternative Solutions focus on identifying and mitigating ESG risks and opportunities throughout the portfolio by employing a clearly delineated ESG framework.
The framework recognizes the fact that our fiduciary responsibility of producing the high risk-adjusted returns for our investors and focuses on topics which have material impact on financial outcomes or operating performance. These items were integrated into the investment process when choosing Makena Capital as a partner.
Within this framework Alternative Solutions key principles include:
- Understanding the unique ESG considerations across geographies and for each strategy and sector.
- Establishing an open dialogue with Makena Capital on ESG best-practices and encourage the adoption and implementation of responsible investment criteria.
- Regularly engaging with our network (external managers, peers, colleagues, investors etc.) on responsible investing to raise awareness, share our knowledge and improve our capabilities.
Alternative Solutions and Makena Capital work in accordance with the global initiative for investors, PRI – Principles for Responsible Investments and has formally undertaken this by signing a commitment to follow the principles and report on the company’s work. The principles are followed at all stages of the organization’s administration and reporting is done annually to PRI. Makena Capital is also a member of Ceres, a nonprofit organization committed to sustainable investing. ESG factors play an integral role in both the pre-investment diligence process and the ongoing monitoring of every investment partnership that is entered by Makena Capital. ESG factors are tailored to each investment partner to understand the associated risks most acutely. The investment partners also commit to Makena’s annual ESG reporting where they survey and measure various metrics which are then aggregated and shared with investors. Makena Capital completed the process of becoming a net zero firm in 2022.
FAQ
Diversification is a key principle in any investment strategy, and it applies to various asset classes, including private equity. To mitigate risks and optimize returns and build a more resilient private equity portfolio it’s prudent to diversify across four different layers: vintage, geography, managers, sectors.
- Vintage diversification
In private equity, vintage refers to the year a fund was raised. Different vintage years may experience different economic and market conditions. By diversifying across vintages, investors can spread risk associated with specific market cycles.
- Geographical diversification
Investing across different regions or countries helps spread risk associated with regional economic factors, regulatory environments, and geopolitical events
Different countries or regions may have varying levels of economic growth, political stability, and legal frameworks that can impact the performance of private equity investments.
- Manager diversification
Diversifying across different fund managers or general partners (GPs) helps reduce the impact of manager-specific risks.
Each manager may have a unique investment strategy, approach to due diligence, and operational expertise. Having exposure to multiple managers can provide a broader range of investment opportunities and reduce reliance on the success of a single manager.
- Sector diversification
Private equity investments can be spread across different industry sectors. This diversification helps mitigate risks associated with the performance of specific sectors.
Economic conditions, market trends, and regulatory changes can affect industries differently. Having exposure to a variety of sectors can help balance the overall portfolio performance.
The desired state from building a Private Equity program / portfolio is reaching a state of steady NAV. This requires continuous investments in new funds as funds expire (normally after ten years). Around 10 managers and 20 fund investments are often mentioned as a sufficient size to build a program. This should of course also be diversified in Vintage, Geography and Sector.
A Private Equity fund is a closed-ended structure and refers to a fund manager raising a set amount from external investors for a fixed number of years (typically ten). After this process, the doors close, money is put to work and, at the end date, the fund is wound up and repaid. This is the traditional fund structure in Private Equity.
A Fund-of-Fund is a closed-ended structure and refers to a fund manager raising a set amount from external investors for a fixed number of years (typically fifteen). After this process, the doors close, money is invested into Private Equity funds (normally 8-10) during a two-year investment cycle and, at the end date, the fund is wound up and repaid.
An Evergreen Fund operates as an open-ended investment vehicle, which means it doesn’t have a fixed maturity date, and investors can enter or exit the fund at any time. Here are some key characteristics and advantages associated with Evergreen Funds:
- Continuous entry and exit
Investors have the flexibility to invest in the fund at various times, and there is no predetermined termination date. This flexibility is advantageous for investors who may want to enter or exit the fund based on their own financial circumstances or market conditions.
- Net Asset Value (NAV) Transactions
Investments in an Evergreen Fund are typically made at the Net Asset Value (NAV). This is normally done at the most recent valuation of the fund.
- Liquidity
Open-ended structures like Evergreen Funds usually offer better liquidity compared to closed-end structures. Investors can redeem their shares with the fund at the prevailing NAV, providing a more straightforward mechanism for accessing their capital.
- Redemption Mechanism
Evergreen Funds often have a redemption mechanism that allows investors to request the redemption of their shares. The redemption process and frequency can vary depending on the fund’s terms.
- Risk management
The continuous entry and exit feature of Evergreen Funds can help manage certain risks. If there’s a significant outflow of capital due to redemptions, the fund manager has the flexibility to adjust the portfolio accordingly without the pressure of a fixed termination date.
- I Income distribution
Evergreen Funds can distribute income to investors early on and periodically. This income may come from exits, dividends, interest, or other sources generated by the underlying assets in the fund.
- Investor access to ongoing opportunities
Since there is no fixed termination date, an Evergreen Fund can continually invest in new opportunities as they arise. This allows the fund manager to adapt the portfolio to changing market conditions and seek attractive investment opportunities over the long term.
In any traditional structure (closed-end), the investor commits X amount and at day one holds 0% in NAV. That commitment is then drawn during the lifetime of the fund. –Normally a fund will never have more than 65% of commitment invested at the same time. This is due to that after some years the fund will start to exit companies continuously.
While funds typically acquire 10 – 20 portfolio companies, these acquisitions do not take place at the same time. Instead, funds usually deploy their capital over the first three to five years of their life. Nor are portfolio companies held for the same period. While some portfolio companies are divested after two or three years (sometimes even earlier), others are held for six years (sometimes even longer). This implies that while some portfolio companies contribute to a continued increase in the NAV of the fund’s portfolio, other companies are already sold, resulting in a decline in the NAV. On a net basis, therefore, the NAV will not reach the total amount of an LP’s committed capital.
As stewards of perpetual capital, Carnegie Fonder is dedicated to maintaining a long-term focus when investing for our clients. Carnegie Fonder’s ESG approach aligns with this long-term orientation as companies must incorporate direct and indirect effects on all stakeholders including the environment and the community when building durable businesses.
When we started Alternative Solutions we analysed the entire market for potential cooperating parties. Makena stood out not only with stellar performance and team but also within ESG.
Makena believes that identifying and advancing material factors related to environmental stewardship, social impact, and corporate governance can improve shareholder returns. Their ESG framework starts with and is rooted in Makenas fiduciary responsibility to deliver the highest risk-adjusted, long-term returns for our investors. By integrating ESG factors into their investment activities we believe Makena can materially enhance financial outcomes or operating performance. There are three principles that guide Makenas ESG integration efforts:
Tailored Approach: Customizing ESG diligence areas and items for each strategy, sector, and geography.
Open Dialogue: Establishing an open dialogue with our external managers on ESG best-practices and encouraging the adoption and implementation of responsible investment criteria.
Continuous Improvement: Regularly engaging with our network—external managers, peers, industry organizations and service providers—to understand evolving best practices, raise awareness, and improve our capabilities.
Their passion for ESG shows in multiple ways.
Annual ESG report which includes a benchmark study of how the underlying managers compare to one another. The benchmark is used as a reference to increase overall ESG level in the portfolio.
PRI Signatories + All existing managers in the portfolio comply with PRI
No Oil & Gas, Gambling, Alcohol, Porn, Tobacco etc.
Makena is represented in numerous manager advisory boards and are ensuring that ESG is not neglected.
CAS works as a distributor for Makena in the Nordics. In addition CAS also work as a sourcing agent for Nordic funds into Makena’s Private Equity and Venture Capital fund. CAS has is an exclusive partner to Makena in the Nordics.
Man fee, 1,25% yearly
Performance fee, 15% över 6% (High Water Mark)
Fund Company Costs, approx 0,2%
Makena and Carnegie Fonder constitute the costs/fees mentioned above. Underlying managers normally use the fee structure 2/20 meaning 2% man fee and 20% over 6%
The Carnegie Fonder structure is built around simplicity for our clients. The best way to do that have been to build it on a Swedish AB structure where one could either invest through Preference Shares or Principal Participating Loans. As we bundle the investment in an AB we settle the tax on gains that the underlying PE managers generate. As the majority of the gains are dividends and capital gains on business-related shares which is generally tax exempt under the Swedish participation exemption regime the tax burden is limited. This means that we as a wrapper handle the tax for all of our investors and you do not need to think about it.
THE TEAM
