Industry Insights from Vistra

Examining the industry trends and operational challenges that face today's alternative investments and the services and technologies that support private equity and venture capital funds.

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global insights on fund formation and management.

September 9, 2024 in Blog

A New Era for Investment Fund Services

August 1, 2024 Press Release The investment fund industry thrives on innovation, efficiency, and seamless…
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September 3, 2024 in Blog

Fund Administration: A Fund and Asset Level Partner

In the ever-evolving landscape of private equity, fund managers are constantly seeking ways to enhance…
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August 26, 2024 in Blog

Unlocking Infinite Potential: The Transfer Agent Partner for Global Fund Managers

In the ever-evolving landscape of global finance, investment fund managers face a myriad of challenges…
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August 15, 2024 in Blog, Investor Relations

Investor Relations for Global Funds

Investor relations are a vital component of the success of any global fund. Effective investor…
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August 8, 2024 in Blog

The Expanding Role of Fund Administration

T he role of fund administration has seen significant expansion over recent decades, evolving from…
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July 31, 2024 in Blog, Fund Accounting

ESG Metrics in Private Equity Fund Accounting

Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) factors have become increasingly vital in private equity. Investors are…
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July 23, 2024 in Blog

Fund Operations for Publicly-Registered Funds

Efficiency and Personalization at Scale   Integrated Fund Administration / Transfer Agent Services For alternative…
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July 12, 2024 in Blog

Scaling an Alternative Fund: From Reg D to Publicly-Registered

Starting an investment fund under Regulation D for conversion later to a publicly-registered fund, under…
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June 27, 2024 in Blog, Investor Relations

Investor Relations for Potential Investors: Overcoming the Obstacles to Investing in Alternatives

I nvestor relations for private equity and venture capital funds that raise capital from retail…
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June 24, 2024 in Blog, Fund Administration

Fund Administration for Publicly-Registered Funds

P ublicly-registered investment funds offer enhanced credibility for fund management, access to more capital and…
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June 13, 2024 in Blog

Fund Accounting Focus: Surviving Tax Season

For alternative investment funds, tax season can be an onerous and distracting chore. With an…
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June 6, 2024 in Blog

Private Equity Rolling Funds

A rolling fund is a type of investment vehicle structured to allow continuous capital raising…
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May 30, 2024 in Blog, Transfer Agent

Transfer Agent Technology: A Portrait of Modern System Efficiency

I n the competitive landscape of private equity, raising capital from retail investors demands efficiency,…
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May 24, 2024 in Blog, Investor Relations

Empowering Investors: Fostering Loyalty Through Investor Relations

I nvestor relations plays a key role in private equity fund management, serving as a…
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May 16, 2024 in Blog, Fund Administration

How Fund Administration Supports Fundraising

F or private equity and venture capital fund managers, fundraising can be a complex endeavor.…
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May 9, 2024 in Blog, Fund Accounting

Fund Accounting for Private Equity Tender Funds

A private equity tender fund is a specialized investment vehicle designed to offer liquidity to…
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May 3, 2024 in Blog

Pledge Funds in Private Equity

A pledge fund is a unique type of investment vehicle in the private equity space…
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April 26, 2024 in Blog, Transfer Agent

Transfer Agent Case Study: Enhancing Data Flow for Financial Advisors

P hoenix American, always an innovator in transfer agent services, has recently integrated its Account…
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April 19, 2024 in Blog, Investor Relations

Investor Relations and the Paper Subscription Document

What Is a Paper Subscription Document? P rivate equity and venture capital fund investors often…
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April 11, 2024 in Blog, Fund Administration

How Fund Administration Works for Private Funds

What is Fund Administration? F und administration is the performance of back-office functions for an…
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April 4, 2024 in Blog, Fund Accounting

Fund Accounting for Complex Modern Funds

In the modern world of private investment funds, managing the complexities and operational demands can…
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March 28, 2024 in Blog, Transfer Agent

The Transfer Agent for 506(c) Funds

T he introduction of Rule 506(c) under the JOBS Act revolutionized how investment funds can…
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March 21, 2024 in Blog

The Evolution of 506(c): The Future of Fundraising

SEC Rule 506(c) was introduced on July 10, 2013, as part of the implementation of…
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March 11, 2024 in Blog, Investor Relations

Tax Document Production: An Investor Relations Priority

For private equity and venture capital funds, investor relations transcends mere communication. It is an…
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February 29, 2024 in Blog, Fund Administration

Fund Administration and Key Person Risk

In the high-stakes environment of a private equity fund, the prowess of the investment team…
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February 22, 2024 in Blog

The Funds Advisors Are Looking For

Many new private fund sponsors are eager to distribute their offerings to the retail investor…
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February 15, 2024 in Blog, Fund Accounting

The Strategic Advantage of Expert Fund Accounting

In today's investment landscape, the nimbleness of a fund manager is more critical than ever.…
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February 8, 2024 in Blog

Advisors and Transfer Agents

Financial advisors who recommend private equity and venture capital investments to their clients are acutely…
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February 1, 2024 in Blog, Investor Relations

Investor Relations for Crowdfunding

Investor relations, a critical component for any investment fund, has special importance in the context…
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January 25, 2024 in Blog, Fund Administration

Compliance Confidence: A Strategic Advantage of Outsourced Fund Administration

The purpose of a fund administration provider is to maintain a professional and systematic back-office…
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January 18, 2024 in Blog

Managing Broker-Dealers: Distribution Partners for Private Funds

For private equity and venture capital funds looking to sell shares to retail investors, a…
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January 11, 2024 in Blog, Fund Accounting

The Reputational Benefits of Fund Accounting

In the high-stakes world of private equity, the role of fund accounting is pivotal. The…
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January 5, 2024 in Blog, Transfer Agent

Going Retail: The Transfer Agent for Retail Investor Funds

For retail investor funds, all the functions related to the back office have to be…
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December 28, 2023 in Blog, Investor Relations

Investor Web Portal Technology: Key to Investor Relations

Effective investor relations today must include a comprehensive investor web portal as investors increasingly expect…
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December 21, 2023 in Blog, Fund Administration

Fund Administration for Institutional Funds

Institutions are the largest and most demanding investors in alternative funds. These organizations pool large…
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December 14, 2023 in Blog, Fund Accounting

Venture Capital Fund Accounting: Part 3 – Considering the Costs

In considering a solution for fund accounting and back-office processes for your fund, It’s important…
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December 8, 2023 in Blog, Transfer Agent

Do You Really Need a Transfer Agent?

The Transfer Agent: An Essential Partner for Retail Investor Funds For private funds raising retail…
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November 30, 2023 in Blog, Investor Relations

Ten Ways to Encourage Reinvestments

For private equity fund managers, fostering reinvestment from existing investors is a nuanced task, deeply…
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November 16, 2023 in Blog

Custodians for Alternative Investments

The primary reason for an alternative investment fund sponsor to need a specialized alternative custodian…
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November 3, 2023 in Blog, Fund Administration

The SOC 1, Type II Audit of Fund Administration Processes

Fund administration firms play a crucial role in the financial industry, responsible for managing the…
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October 26, 2023 in Blog, Fund Accounting

Fund Accounting 101: Capital Activity

How to account for your capital flow, manage its movements and report on it with…
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October 19, 2023 in Blog, Transfer Agent

The Transfer Agent Through the Fund Lifecycle

A solid relationship with a quality transfer agent throughout the life of your fund is critical to…
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October 12, 2023 in Blog, Investor Relations

The 10 Key Touchpoints in Investor Relations

Once you have sold your investment product to a new investor, for years thereafter you…
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October 5, 2023 in Blog, Fund Administration

Taking on Tax Season: K-1 and 1099 Production for Private Equity and Venture Capital

Fund Administration for Tax Season Tax document production for alternative investment funds can be a…
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September 29, 2023 in Blog, Fund Accounting

Venture Capital Fund Accounting Part 2: Regulation and Reputation

As a venture capital manager, you understand the importance of fund accounting. The value, performance…
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September 22, 2023 in Blog, Transfer Agent

Focus on Fundraising: Your Transfer Agent and New Investors

There are numerous ways that a third-party transfer agent can increase the efficiency of your…
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September 14, 2023 in Blog, Investor Relations

Investor Relations for Every Investor Type

Investor relations for a private equity or venture capital fund is an intricate business. There…
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September 7, 2023 in Blog, Fund Administration

10 Reasons Why More Funds Are Outsourcing Fund Administration

In the early days of private equity and venture capital funds were small face-to-face partnerships…
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August 31, 2023 in Blog, Fund Accounting

Venture Capital Fund Accounting, Part 1: Supporting Your Success

The manager of a venture capital fund has one top priority, generating strong returns for…
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August 24, 2023 in Blog, Transfer Agent

Transfer Agent Case Study: Switching to a New Provider

There is nothing more frustrating than an underperforming transfer agent. Errors, omissions, delays and miscommunications…
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August 17, 2023 in Blog, Investor Relations

Investor Relations for Your Fund

An effective investor relations team is an integral part of the back-office architecture of any investment fund…
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August 10, 2023 in Blog

The Fund Administration Landscape

There are many choices when considering a fund administration provider for your private equity or…
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August 3, 2023 in Blog

What is Fund Accounting? And What Should Fund Accounting Be?

Fund accounting is a detail-oriented, deadline-driven role designed to streamline back-office administration for an investment fund so…
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July 27, 2023 in Blog

8 Advantages to Using a Transfer Agent

When forming a new investment fund, many managers little consider back-office considerations and dismiss the…
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July 20, 2023 in Blog

Building and Maintaining Investor Relationships

You may not interact personally with all of your investors but building and maintaining investor…
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July 13, 2023 in Blog

Fund Administration for Debt Funds, Part 2 – Systems & Experience

Increasing investor expectations and new government regulations are just some of the factors driving the…
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July 6, 2023 in Blog

Fund Accounting for Today’s Funds

Private equity funds have unique fund accounting challenges, the more so because no two private…
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June 29, 2023 in Blog

Beyond Transfer Agent Services

When you consider a working relationship with a transfer agent, the obvious considerations are the…
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June 22, 2023 in Blog

Investor Relations and New Investment Processing

New investment processing is all about efficiency and accuracy and an essential part of investor…
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June 16, 2023 in Blog

Fund Administration for Debt Funds: Part 1 – The Back-Office Partner

The trend toward outsourcing fund administration to a third party is growing across all asset…
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June 8, 2023 in Blog

Tax Season Take-Aways: Avoiding the Headaches – Part 2

Tax season is a challenge for fund managers. There are often multiple unexpected headaches with…
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May 25, 2023 in Blog

Straight-Through Processing, Transfer Agent Connectivity and Advisor Adoption

The transfer agent is an important part of the development of the alternative investment into…
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May 18, 2023 in Blog

Manager Survey: The Goal of Investor Relations

Phoenix American recently surveyed alternative investment fund managers on their attitudes toward investor relations. Whether…
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May 11, 2023 in Blog

50/20/30 is the New 60/40 – but Fund Administration is Key

The traditional investment portfolio allocation, 60% equities/40% bonds, is established wisdom for many investors and…
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April 27, 2023 in Blog

Succeeding at Scale: Fund Administration for Growing Funds

As the manager of an alternative fund, if you have done your job well your…
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April 7, 2023 in Blog

Tax Season Take-Aways: Handling the Headaches – Part 1

Fund Accounting and Tax Preparation Tax season can be a serious challenge for fund managers.…
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March 22, 2023 in Blog

4 Ways a Third-Party Transfer Agent Can Make You Money

In choosing a transfer agent, you have the right to expect a return your transfer…
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March 15, 2023 in Blog

The Investor Journey – Twelve Components of Investor Relations

The experience of investors during the life of their investment in an alternative fund goes…
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March 10, 2023 in Blog

The Economics of Fund Administration

The overall value of third-party fund administration can be measured in a number of different…
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March 2, 2023 in Blog

Sizing Up a Fund Accounting Firm – Part 1: History and Experience

You've already made a significant step toward a productive and compliant back office for your…
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February 9, 2023 in Blog

Your Shareholder Database: Maintaining Data Integrity

The most basic function of your transfer agent team is to maintain your shareholder database.…
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February 2, 2023 in Blog

Outsourcing Investor Relations: Quality, Effectiveness and Cost

For CFOs and fund managers, back-office efficiency and compliance are crucial. For investors, transparency and…
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January 19, 2023 in Blog

Fund Accounting Focus: Financial Reporting for Private Equity

When you begin working with a fund accounting provider, you want to know what to expect…
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January 5, 2023 in Blog

Focus on Fundraising: Fund Administration and Straight-Through Processing

Fund administration is an important aspect of the alternative investment industry, as it involves the…
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December 29, 2022 in Blog

The SOC 1, Type II Audit of Transfer Agent Processes

Atransfer agent’s clients rely on special systems and procedures to process and store sensitive data.…
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December 21, 2022 in Blog

Investor Relations Pitfalls, Part 3 – Communications

Investors are more demanding than ever before, have higher expectations and, because they have a…
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December 13, 2022 in Blog

Fund Accounting 101: Reporting Deliverables

You should be aware of what to anticipate from your fund accounting team and what…
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December 1, 2022 in Blog

Case Study: Transfer Agent Innovation Enables Private Investors in a Public Fund

By its strictest definition, a transfer agent is a neutral third-party organization that processes the transfer of…
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November 22, 2022 in Blog

Investor Relations Pitfalls, Part 2 – Controls

T here is more variety and competition among investment funds than ever before. Investors have…
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October 28, 2022 in Blog

The 4 Qualities That Matter In a Transfer Agent

Operational efficiency in your back office and full oversight and control over your investor and…
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October 25, 2022 in Blog

Investor Relations Pitfalls, Part 1 – Systems

More opportunities than ever before exist for investors. Many fund sponsors are vying for the…
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October 20, 2022 in Blog

Representing Fund Administration

The ADISA Annual Conference and Trade Show 2022 Industry engagement with the major trade organizations…
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October 4, 2022 in Blog

Risk, Reputation and the Role of Fund Administration

The world of private investment funds has radically changed over recent decades...
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September 28, 2022 in Blog

10 Ways Third-Party Fund Administration Saves You Money

The benefits to investment funds of outsourced fund operations, including fund accounting, administration, tax services,…
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September 23, 2022 in Blog

Fund Accounting 101: What is Fund Accounting?

Fund accounting is a detail-oriented, deadline-driven role designed to streamline back-office administration for an investment…
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September 22, 2022 in Blog

What Is a Transfer Agent?

In its most limited sense, a transfer agent is an agnostic third-party entity required to…
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September 14, 2022 in Blog

Investor Relations for Private Equity & Venture Capital

An effective investor relations team is an integral part of the back-office architecture of any…
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September 8, 2022 in Blog

Fund Administration, FactRight and Industry Engagement

As part of our commitment to providing top-quality fund administration for alternative investments Phoenix American,…
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October 6, 2021 in Blog

1031 Exchange Series: Life Science Properties & Opportunity Zone Investing

As an intern for Phoenix American Financial Services, I am conducting market research pertaining to…
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September 17, 2021 in Blog

1031 Exchange Series: The Retail Apocalypse

The Biden Administration is not the first to attempt to limit 1031 exchanges.
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August 18, 2021 in Blog

1031 Exchange Series: Preserving history while building for the future

The Biden Administration is not the first to attempt to limit 1031 exchanges.
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August 4, 2021 in Blog

1031 Exchange Series: Legislative Clarity & Emerging Alternatives

The Biden Administration is not the first to attempt to limit 1031 exchanges.
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July 21, 2021 in Blog

1031 Exchange Series: Biden’s American Families Plan and 1031

The Biden Administration is not the first to attempt to limit 1031 exchanges.
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July 14, 2021 in Blog

1031 Exchange Series: What is a 1031 Exchange?

As an intern for Phoenix American Financial Services, I am conducting market research pertaining to…
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March 11, 2021 in Blog

Fund Accounting 101: Distribution Waterfalls

How investment returns are allotted to investors and management must be easy for investors to…
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July 20, 2020 in Blog

New Report: Venture Capital & COVID-19 Trend Outlook

We have published a new white paper examining the initial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic…
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July 1, 2020 in Blog

What is the Impact of Covid-19 on CRE?

Our latest white paper examines the initial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis on commercial…
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April 17, 2020 in Blog

How to Emerge From COVID-19 Stronger

The Coronavirus pandemic has been a large-scale lesson in operational risk and disaster preparedness for…
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