Insights & Resources
Expert research on RIA distribution, alternative investments, and investor intelligence.
Exchange Funds vs. 351 ETFs: How Founder Families Diversify Without a Tax Bill
How Section 721 exchange funds, Section 351 ETF seeding, charitable remainder trusts and direct indexing let founder families diversify concentrated stock, and what the IRS's September 2026 guidance changes for advisers.
The SEC Family Office Exclusion After Archegos: What Family Offices Still Disclose
What Rule 202(a)(11)(G)-1 exempts and what it does not: 13F, 13D/13G after the 2023 amendments, Section 16, Form 13H, Form PF, Form SHO and withdrawn swap reporting, with Archegos as the case study.
Raising Capital from Single Family Offices: A Field Guide for Alternatives Managers
How single family offices actually decide, how they differ from endowments and RIAs as LPs, the Reg D, accredited investor, broker-dealer and marketing rule guardrails, and a step-by-step research and outreach process.
Private Credit in Family Office Portfolios: Structures, Liquidity Terms and Due Diligence
How family offices hold private credit, from drawdown funds and BDCs to interval funds, SMAs and co-investments: the rules behind liquidity terms, BDC leverage limits, fee layers, the 2025-2026 stress points and what managers should expect in diligence.
How Single Family Offices Run Direct and Co-Investment Programs: A Guide for GPs
What UBS, Citi, BNY and J.P. Morgan surveys show about family office direct investing, how offices staff, source and structure co-investments, what research says on adverse selection, and what GPs should know before pitching.
Variable Prepaid Forwards and Collars: The Tax Rules and the Public Filing Trail
How variable prepaid forwards and collars on concentrated stock work, how Section 1259, Rev. Rul. 2003-7, Anschutz, McKelvey and the straddle rules shape them, and what Form 4, Schedule 13D and proxy filings reveal.
Rule 10b5-1 After 2022: How Founder Family Offices Sell Concentrated Stakes
How the SEC's 2022 Rule 10b5-1 amendments, Item 408 disclosure, Form 4 gift reporting, Rule 144 volume limits and Section 16 and 13(d) attribution shape founder family sales of concentrated stock.
PPLI and Insurance-Dedicated Funds: What Alternatives Managers Need to Know
How private placement life insurance and insurance-dedicated funds work under Sections 7702 and 817(h), what the Senate Finance Committee's 2024 PPLI report found, and what S. 4279 would change for alternatives managers serving UHNW families.
Borrowing Against Wealth: SBLOCs, Pledged Founder Stock and Art Loans in Family Offices
How family offices raise liquidity against securities, founder stock, art, aircraft, yachts and fund interests: Regulation U and T rules, margin-call dynamics, Item 403(b) pledge disclosure, ISS policy, forced-sale cases and buy-borrow-die.
Private Trust Companies: Who Decides When a Family's Trustee Is the Counterparty
How private trust companies work: regulated vs unregulated PTCs, six leading US jurisdictions compared, IRS Notice 2008-63 governance, the 2026 end of domestic BOI reporting, and what it means for advisers and managers.
How the Top 30 Family Offices Use Dual-Loop Derivative Structures to Hedge Public Stocks
An institutional-grade analysis of the two-layer derivative architectures used by the world's most sophisticated family offices to protect concentrated public equity positions — from Walton to Dalio, Gates to Griffin — and the regulatory terrain they navigate to do it.
The RIA Channel Is Now a Core Alternatives Distribution Frontier — But Access Is Concentrating Fast
Private markets allocations are bifurcating across the RIA channel. How platform gatekeepers, PE-backed consolidation, and centralized model portfolios are concentrating alternatives capital in 2026.
Private Credit's Liquidity Reckoning Is Reshaping How Fund Managers Must Sell to RIAs
The asset class RIAs loved most is now teaching them the hardest lesson. How the Q1 2026 liquidity crunch is changing private credit distribution to advisors.
The State of RIA & Advisor Data in 2026: What Asset Managers Actually Need
Nearly 70% of RIAs manage less than $700M in assets yet most asset managers' data strategies haven't kept pace with how the channel is changing. Here's what distribution teams actually need in 2026.
How AI Is Transforming Wealth Management Prospecting: A Practical Guide for 2026
AI is reshaping how asset managers find and engage financial advisors and allocators. Here's what's working in 2026 — and what's just noise.
Family Offices Name AI Their Top Investment Theme — But Portfolios Tell a Different Story
Two-thirds of family offices rank AI as their leading investment priority, yet more than half have no exposure to growth equity or venture capital where much of the AI value chain is being built.
Hedge Funds Are Back: Institutions Increase Allocations After Alpha Winter
After a decade-long alpha drought, hedge funds delivered 16% returns in 2025. Now 45% of institutional investors plan to increase allocations—the highest level ever recorded.
Retail Capital Becomes Fastest-Growing Source in $240 Billion Secondaries Market
Evergreen funds serving individual investors are now the fastest-growing capital source in the secondary market for private equity stakes, reshaping how retail wealth accesses private markets.
AI Prompts ETF Wholesalers Use to Win More Advisor Business
Discover the specific AI prompts and strategies that top ETF wholesalers are using to research advisors, personalize outreach, and close more distribution partnerships.
RIAs Are Increasing Allocations to Active ETFs: What's Driving the Shift
Active ETFs are capturing record flows from RIA portfolios. Explore the factors driving this allocation shift and what it means for advisors and asset managers.
Top Private Equity Firms Using RIAs for Distribution of Funds
Private equity giants are increasingly partnering with RIAs to access high-net-worth capital. Learn which firms are leading this distribution evolution and how the partnerships work.
Top Management Hires in the RIA World in the Last 6 Months
A comprehensive look at the most significant executive moves shaping the RIA industry, from billion-dollar firms to fast-growing aggregators.
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