Key Takeaways
- • CAIS, an alternative investment platform for financial advisors, announced a $100 million investment from Reverence Capital Partners, a continuation of its $225 million round in January.
- • The January round was led by Apollo, Motive Partners, and Franklin Templeton and lifted CAIS's enterprise valuation above $1 billion.
- • Milton Berlinski, Managing Partner at Reverence Capital Partners, joined CAIS's Board of Directors effective immediately.
- • CAIS reports platform transaction volume rose 69% and platform users rose 29% over the last year.
Summary
CAIS, described in the release as a leading alternative investment platform, announced a $100 million investment from Reverence Capital Partners, according to a Business Wire release dated April 6, 2022. The investment extends the $225 million round CAIS closed in January, which was led by Apollo, Motive Partners, and Franklin Templeton and resulted in an enterprise valuation exceeding $1 billion. As part of the transaction, Milton Berlinski, Managing Partner at Reverence Capital Partners, joined the CAIS Board of Directors with immediate effect.
Matt Brown, Founder and CEO of CAIS, said Reverence understands the needs of both financial advisors and alternative asset managers and praised the network Berlinski and his team will bring to the company. Berlinski said CAIS provides the resources and infrastructure needed to enhance access, education, execution, and reporting for complex alternative solutions.
The company said the proceeds, like the January capital, will fund technology development, personalized client experiences, and digitization of product operations for fund managers and financial advisors. CAIS cited Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst Association estimates that alternatives could reach up to 24% of the global investable market by 2025, up from 12% in 2018. CAIS also reported that transaction volume on its platform rose 69% and platform users rose 29% over the last year.
The announcement follows the launch of the CAIS Advisory Council, a standing committee of RIAs, independent broker dealers, RIA aggregators, and custodians that will advise on platform expansion and issues affecting the alternative investment ecosystem. Per the release, CAIS offers hedge funds, private equity, private credit, real estate, digital assets, and structured notes to advisors, with Mercer conducting independent due diligence on listed funds. The company says it has more than 4,800 advisor firms and teams overseeing over $2 trillion in network assets, and has facilitated over $15 billion in transaction volume since its 2009 founding.
Matt Brown, Founder and CEO of CAIS, said Reverence understands the needs of both financial advisors and alternative asset managers and praised the network Berlinski and his team will bring to the company. Berlinski said CAIS provides the resources and infrastructure needed to enhance access, education, execution, and reporting for complex alternative solutions.
The company said the proceeds, like the January capital, will fund technology development, personalized client experiences, and digitization of product operations for fund managers and financial advisors. CAIS cited Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst Association estimates that alternatives could reach up to 24% of the global investable market by 2025, up from 12% in 2018. CAIS also reported that transaction volume on its platform rose 69% and platform users rose 29% over the last year.
The announcement follows the launch of the CAIS Advisory Council, a standing committee of RIAs, independent broker dealers, RIA aggregators, and custodians that will advise on platform expansion and issues affecting the alternative investment ecosystem. Per the release, CAIS offers hedge funds, private equity, private credit, real estate, digital assets, and structured notes to advisors, with Mercer conducting independent due diligence on listed funds. The company says it has more than 4,800 advisor firms and teams overseeing over $2 trillion in network assets, and has facilitated over $15 billion in transaction volume since its 2009 founding.
Go deeper than the headline
Research every firm in this story, track the ones that matter and get the daily briefing — free for 7 days.