Demos gracias!
Thanksgiving is an American tradition. There is no other country that celebrates this day because it is based on a historic encounter. Four hundred years ago, a group of Pilgrims left their homeland and sailed across the ocean in pursuit of liberty and prosperity. They learned to survive in a new world thanks to the kindness of the native Wampanoag people. Together, they celebrated the bonds of community during a time of great hardship.
Many Latinos and Latinas have made this tradition our own, maybe not with the same meaning as Americans do but with our own sense of gratitude for all the blessings we receive on a daily basis.
As those first Pilgrims, we are thankful for the opportunities we found in this country and the people who have opened their homes and their hearts to help us. We have learned to live and share our experiences with families from all ancestries, races, religions, and other differences that make us appreciate the value of diversity.
The history of this country is based on the immigrant experience. From the pilgrims looking for religious freedom to those who were forced to arrive in this land through slavery, and from the waves of immigrants who fled wars, famine, or political persecution to those who continue to arrive today in search for better life opportunities, we must open our arms and invite them to our tables.
Thanks to Sam Austin from NEPC, Luis Maizel from LC Capital Group, and Monika Mantilla from Altura Capital, for reminding us of the important task our industry faces; the strategies we need to apply to be the architects of our own solutions; and the ethical nature of our advocacy.
This month, we are particularly thankful for the participation of all NAA members and private and public funds officers, who met during our CIO Asset Class Connections meetings in the Annual Virtual Fall Tour. We also thank speakers at the Dealmakers Virtual Forum on the important topic of the US Economic Recovery. If you were not able to attend, please watch the replay below.
Special thanks to all our sponsors and supporters! Because of their generosity, we are able to provide a $5,000 scholarship to every intern that participated in our New America Alliance Institute Internship Program this year. Congratulations to all students!
Please continue to peruse our digest and find all the announcements that are coming our way including the PitchBook report and summary of the LIVE event in NYC. Thanks to our Chairman, Gerson Guzman, for such a successful event.
Our shared traditions encourage Latinos to be grateful for the blessings we receive. Still, we need to remember that no matter the circumstances we live in or the hardships we face, such as the ones during the pandemic and the economic recovery, we can always find reasons and people to be grateful for: our parents, children, and grandchildren, our family – close or extended --, our friends and colleagues, and all those who come to our lives to share theirs with us.
¿Y tú, por qué estás agradecido?
Solange F. Brooks
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NAA Voices
Only a Data-Driven DE&I Strategy Will Impact the Investment Industry
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An interview with Sam Austin, NEPC LLC Partner by Susana G Baumann, NAA External Marketing Communications Adviser
NEPC LLC is an independent and full-service investment consulting firm offering innovative, research-driven investment solutions to governments, institutions, families, and individuals. We spoke with Sam Austin, Partner and Executive Committee Member at NEPC LLC, about their outstanding results in NEPC’s DE&I latest initiatives.
NAA: Thanks for taking the time to talk to us about NEPC and its DE&I initiatives. Can you please tell us more about NECP and confirm the amount of assets under advisement and the number of employees working in
your firm?
SA: The firm advises institutional as well as high net worth clients on their asset allocation, portfolio construction, manager selection, and risk in their portfolio. Presently, we are advising on 1.4 trillion, and we hire approximately 330 employees in the United States.
NAA: Thanks for confirming. Today's topic of our conversation is sharing information about a very successful DE&I initiative that has taken off since you entered the firm about four years ago and surpassed expectations. Can you give us a scope of the initiative, and how do you see it changing the industry?
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Blue Chip
Short Retrospective on the History of NAA
By Luis Maizel, Co-Founder and Senior Managing Director, LM Capital Group LLC
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The NAA was started almost 21 years ago by Raul Yzaguirre and Henry Cisneros, modeled a bit like the Rainbow Coalition of Jesse Jackson, with the idea of trying to improve the participation of Hispanic financial firms in an environment dominated by the big Wall Street firms.
The dismal participation of Latinos in asset management (less than 1% of total AUM at the time), was the big motivation of the two visionaries to create an organization that would not only communicate the capacity of Hispanic firms but hopefully empower them to compete in the open market. My firm, LM Capital Group, was established several years before the NAA was formed. Early on during those first years, emerging minority-owned firms found it tremendously difficult to open any doors with institutional investors, Treasuries, and their consultants. I can attest to that; but we carried on as other Latino firms did.
The initial NAA effort did not emphasize any particular area of money management, and the original members covered a gamut of specialties, ranging from fixed income to equities, private equity, brokerage, and consulting, with the common purpose of improving the opportunities for all.
Members like Martin Cabrera, Tom Soto, the Castro brothers, Monika Mantilla, Marcos Rodriguez, and others, including me, joined non-asset managers in the advertising business, hospitality, arts, and other industries with the purpose of bettering the life of Hispanics, not to promote their own firms. It was about the U.S. Hispanic community.
The NAA has been involved in several highly successful, altruistic projects throughout the years, but one of the great accomplishments was that we were instrumental in planting the seed in the investment world of the power of Hispanic capabilities in financial management.
NAA became a widely respected organization when the Wall Street Summit was instituted. The event was a window to exhibit what Latinos were capable of, and to the size of the community in terms of purchasing power. Great speakers like Hillary Clinton, many CEOs of the Fortune 100 companies, and other powerful politicians were present in these events, and many of the largest public institutions were represented by their senior investment officials.
Among this NAA scenario, LM Capital Group persevered to provide fixed-income investment management services to investors. The firm is now an employee-owned business servicing public funds, corporations, and foundations and distinguishes itself by utilizing a long-term, global macroeconomic methodology to assemble concentrated portfolios to provide clients with what we believe is among the most attractive investment opportunities. Like NAA, we persevered.
Also, like NAA, we believe in the long-term. We believe that through a long-term understanding of the underlying global economic factors driving the performance of each sector and region, we can take optimal advantage of market anomalies and inefficiencies, thus enhancing returns and minimizing risk. We have the clear, enduring mission to make our clients enhanced returns.
Through the years, NAA has maintained a clear and definite mission as well: to advance the Latino community in (1) education, (2) political awareness, (3) economic empowerment, and (4) philanthropy. In addition to the U.S. Hispanic community, the NAA now advocates for women and communities of color as well. The key to its continued success is to avoid internal politics or individual promotion.
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Member Spotlight
Monika Mantilla, Co-Founder, Altura Capital
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Altura Capital, an impact investment firm and platform to launch our own solutions
I frequently think about the legacy we will leave behind— how will we improve lives and our world? How will we lift communities, build and manage ourselves and learn to collaborate in effective, meaningful ways?
That is why we created Altura back in 2005 as an impact investing firm. We firmly believed that Diversity and Inclusion mattered greatly in the investment industry and that they could act as a lever to build significant value for investors and a better world for all.
We have also believed in investing in low- and moderate-income communities and creating high-quality jobs. Those three beliefs emerged as the three pillars of our Impact thesis— focusing mainly on the "S" from an ESG perspective. What can be a more powerful engine to transform societies than enabling business owners to maximize their value-creation potential?
We founded Altura with my husband Jay Garcia, a partner in life and business. We were later joined by our partners Carlos Signoret and Judy Frodigh— all stellar private equity professionals and business builders. Since inception, we asked ourselves: how can we generate long-term value and build strong partnerships with our investors and our ecosystem at the same time?
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New America Alliance Institute
Gateway Scholarships Program
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At a meeting of the New America Alliance Institute Board earlier this month, the Board unanimously approved Gateway Scholarship awards of $5,000 to each of the students successfully completing the Pathway Fellowship Program during this past summer. The Gateway Scholarship can be combined with other college tuition awards/scholarships, and it can also be used for approved college expenses such as laptops, books, etc. The goal is to genuinely ease the financial burden of these fine students as they pursue their college education.
Part of the mission of these programs is to provide young American Latinos, women, and people of color college scholarships that will lead them to professional careers, thus increasing the next generation pipeline. We hope to inspire lifelong learning, help build a supporting fellowship networking community, and empower youth to find or create their own leadership path. Please join us in extending our sincere congratulations to the next generation of leaders!
This year’s total $60,000 awards were made possible by the generous donation of Valor Equity Partners and Reverence Capital Partners. If you wish to help ensure resources are available for deserving diverse students via the Gateway Scholarships, donate here:
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2021 NAA NATIONAL TOUR - FALL SESSION
CIO Asset Class Connections in Review
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Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) Investment Officer - Emerging Manager Program & Total Portfolio Rosa Perez overview at the CIO Asset Class Connections meeting.
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Great turnout at CIO Asset Class Connections meeting with Illinois State Board of Investment ISBI
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CTPF Executive Director, Carlton Lenoir, Sr. presenting at the CIO Asset Class Connections meeting
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2021 DEALMAKERS FORUM NYC - FALL SESSION
in collaboration with PitchBook
Seeding and Anchoring the Next Generation of Managers
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On October 21, in collaboration with PitchBook, we gathered at the offices of Long Arc Capital to hear candid insights from four industry leaders on the seeding and anchoring landscape. Our Chair, Gerson R. Guzman, Co-Founder of Ceiba Capital Partners, welcomed a standing-room-only crowd to our first in-person event since the pandemic. With over 60 representatives from emerging and established asset management firms, allocators, and service providers, we heard from Jeffry Brown, CEO, Azimut Alternative Capital Partners; Val Ivanson, Head of U.S. Manager Research, Stable Asset Management; Kirk Sims, Director and Head of Emerging Manager Program, Teacher Retirement System of Texas; and Alan Weinfeld, Partner, Invesco Private Capital. They shared their perspectives on the current state of the seeding and anchoring space as well as thoughts regarding the future of this growing market.
Traditional LPs and seeding firms approach seeding in different ways. The emerging managers' program of a large pension fund will choose to back managers in part because of their long-term growth potential and market perception, as well as their interest in building an enduring relationship. PitchBook's Wylie Fernyhough, Lead PE Analyst, and Rebecca Springer, PE Analyst, moderated the discussion based on their recent report, Seeding and Anchoring Private Equity Managers.
PitchBook has prepared a write-up on key takeaways from the discussion in a short article format. We will release it in the coming week to NAA members and for public distribution via PitchBook's newsletter. Stay tuned!
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New! Career Opportunities
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NAA supports matching high-quality professional talent with institutions across the United States. SEE CAREER OPPORTUNITIES HERE. Interested candidates, please reference New America Alliance in your application and notify Jodi Towner at jtowner@naaonline.org once submitted so we may be aware of your candidacy.
Employers, you may submit information on current high-level and high-impact job vacancies to Jodi Towner at jtowner@naaonline.org.
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