Contact us
Contact

what we do:

Our edge to private fund managers

“deep private fund executive level in-house and law firm experience”

Separate from the private fund pack

“pragmatic solutions to private fund problems to make change happen”

Strategic benefit to private fund managers

“real world private fund manager legal & business matter know how sets us apart”
+

About us

Alternative fund pllc is a hybrid legal and business matter law firm to private funds and private fund managers. Trusted advisors to private fund start-ups, pioneer portfolio managers, hedge funds, private equity funds, venture capital and leading alternative asset management organizations. More than 25 years of both executive level experienced attorneys to leading alternative asset management organizations and public sector experienced attorneys advising the spectrum of private fund clients as former in-house general counsels, chief legal, chief operations officers and corporate-securities lawyers at cutting edge NYC securities law firms makes us uniquely positioned to offer pragmatic legal and business matter solutions for today's private fund managers across start-ups to well established private fund manager organizations.
Breadth of enterprise wide private fund manager know-how: start-ups, fund formation, investment adviser formation, partner, governing structures and spectrum of structures, asset classes and strategies across: hedge funds, private equity funds, venture capital, segregated series funds, ICAVs, fund of funds, (onshore-offshore) master-feeders, sub-advisers, manager of managers, managed accounts, sub-adviser, hybrid funds, reinsurance, catastrophic bonds, insurance linked securities, long-short equities, managed futures, loan origination, real estate funds, fixed income, swaps, index funds, closed end funds, to name a few. Trading adviser front, middle and back office structures and operations, private fund manager build-out, counter-party set up, regulatory and compliance framework, enterprise risk management process and controls, investors: high net worth, family offices, institutions, seed partners marketing and solicitation strategy and operations.
  • Bespoke & viable solutions to problems
  • Scalable, pragmatic & strategic
  • Partner level no matter scope of need
  • Knowledge, experience & relationships to facilitate asset growth
Contact us

Our private fund clients

0+
private fund start ups to established
0+
onshore-offshore private firms
0+
private equity funds
0+
hedge funds

Our scope of private fund expertise

Private fund formation
“private fund formation solutions at every phase of a firm’s life cycle”
Private fund manager compliance & operations
“viable & scalable front-back office compliance-operations across AUM, teams, people”
Private fund focused attorneys
“deep (in house & public sector) private fund focused attorneys sets us apart”
Private fund investor ready support
“spectrum of private fund strategies, fund investors, offering structures, fund managers”
Private fund manager risk management build out
“investor, regulatory or risk management ready, gap analysis & solutions”
Private fund partner business transactional & governance
“in-house & public sector private fund experienced attorneys sets us apart”
Private fund c-suite fractional support to better manage risk
“c-suite executive level experienced attorneys from leading private funds”
Private fund marketing do’s and don’ts
“strategic & tailored support to match portfolio edge, target investors and aum”

For answers to your particular scope of need, either contact us directly or submit a question

FAQs
  • Scope of fund formation experience and expertise?
    Our team has extensive experience across the spectrum of strategies and structures advising conventional to complex across pioneer portfolio managers, emerging managers and leading US and global alternative asset management firms. We have extensive expertise forming onshore and offshore structures and jurisdictions across U.S., BVI, Bermuda or Cayman Islands. Choice of structure and jurisdiction dependent on variables such as investor type, jurisdiction, marketing strategy, assets under management, infrastructure, etc.
  • Does an investment adviser have to register?
    Fact sensitive depending on the structure set-up, strategy, amount of assets under management, domicile, to name a few. A pragmatic business approach seeks to ensure a viable and sustainable private fund manager organization to take advantage of a each client's particular facts and circumstances. Properly managing state or federal adviser registration or firm build out as needed with our expert guidance and support can materially mitigate the fixed costs and create more viable economics.
  • How do you offer multiple strategies and asset classes within one fund offering structure?
    Delaware, and a limited number of others states as well as certain offshore jurisdictions offer a structure similar to a segregated portfolio company or independent collective investment vehicle allowing for multiple strategies under one structure with the legal segregation of assets (ringfenced) to avoid cross-collateral exposure. Trading organizations with multiple strategies may find this structure appealing as well as private equity organizations; especially, if investing in multiple silo investments for a group of investors. This structure has its operational pros and cons and your strategy, short and long terms goals determine its viability for a particular strategy and offering.
  • Scope of a typical stand alone private fund offering?
    A conventional offering consist of (i) a robust offering memorandum describing teams, people, strategy, asset class, liquidity, etc. about 60-80 pages; (ii) a governing document for investors detailing, among other things, valuation, liquidity, fees, alignment of interests, lock-up if applicable, gate language if applicable, timing of investment and redemptions, class of investors, if applicable, etc. This is typically about 50 pages long and tailored to investor documents, strategy, firm framework; (iii) a detailed subscription agreement tailored to the material terms above and containing certain representations and warranties to protect both parties to evidence ownership interests typically 60-80 pages; (iv) governing documents for partners; and (v) the formation of entities across investment adviser and pooled investment vehicle(s), to name a few. See our private fund formation video above for examples of some typical offering structures
  • How to offset cost of full offering structure to generate interest prior to raising outside assets?
    A pre-solicitation offering structure (Incubator Fund) may be created to test a trading strategy and build a track record using "proprietary" assets before offering the pooled investment vehicle securities to outside investors. This structure is typically known as an Incubator Fund and a fraction of the legal cost of forming a conventional private fund offering structure for outside investors. This may be used to first test a strategy and build a track record before offering and raising assets from outside investors. A typical incubator offering framework will not include, among other things: (i) a detailed offering memorandum, (ii) governing agreement for investors; and (iii) a conventional subscription agreement to evidence ownership by outside investors in the private fund securities; and (iv) certain additional counter-party set-up.
  • Form of business support to start-up fund to well established private funds and their advisors?
    Our team is uniquely positioned with the legal and business experience of both working in-house for leading and global alternative asset management organizations as well as publicly as securities lawyers to established law firms to private fund managers, which means a deep legal and business skill set to provide pragmatic legal and business solutions across all phases of operating a successful private fund manager organization from inception, build out and growth during its life cycle.
  • How can a fund manager augment its edge to separate from the pack to investors?
    A gap analysis can be specific to an area of stress or a firm wide diagnostic review across the enterprise. We review existing processes and controls for investor red flags, potential gaps, regulatory risk, business risk. Then make tailored recommendations, close gaps upon request, and offer a final report which may be used as a marketing tool to project safety of assets and a better risk managed firm to investors and proactively avoid regulatory issues before they happen.
  • Scope of strategic marketing support?
    We have relationships with third-parties that seek to raise assets for private fund managers across broker-dealers, placement agents and investors. Depending on strategy, track record and pedigree, we seek to place a client in the best position to succeed.
  • Marketing considerations for high net worth, family offices or institutional investors?
    The opportunity at an initial meeting with a potential sophisticated investor to place yourself in the best position to succeed. Unless a pre-existing relationship with a seed investor, friends or family, a typical start-up fund will seek to raise initial assets with pre-existing trusted relationships such as friends and family. After year one, a manager may use it established track record to communicate its edge to outside investors. Depending on strategy, return profile of risk adjusted returns, market demand, firm framework in place (skin in the game) viable operations, assets under management, among other things,, determines the target market investor across high-net worth, family offices and/or institutional investors. To increase the likely-hood of marketing success, managers may seek to have the forgoing in place relative to AUM, teams and people before marketing.

Questions about our services?

    captcha write the text you see below.

    Some client examples

    We recently launched for a client an offshore feeder structure into an existing US stand-alone fund to accommodate its institutional investor’s substantial investment. This investor required a tax blocker entity and its availability for investment within a four-week period. Although this type of offering structure typically takes 6-8 weeks for less nimble law firms to set-up and execute across offering documents and structure, to accommodate our client seeking to trade investor’s assets within the following month, we relied on our extensive experience and expertise to execute in--house and offsetting a material percentage of offshore legal start-up costs in an efficient manner by avoiding offshore law firm execution where applicable.
    Risk Managed Closed End Funds Ltd.
    Engaged by COO of Argent, formerly one of the largest traders of a convertible arbitrage strategy to perform enterprise level diagnostic review, gap analysis, recommendation report in connection with a number of U.S. and offshore funds, equity funds, registered investment advisers, operations and compliance framework across its enterprise. Objective to increase efficiencies, create robust best practices infrastructure and materially reduce risk, legacy cost, and augment strategy to attract and win new institutional assets from its exiting high net worth base.  Engaged by parent company, across new fund offerings (onshore-offshore), marketing, operations, fractional General Counsel and COO support to execute goal.
    Argent Financial
    Principal of our firm launched reinsurance onshore and offshore master-feeder and advisory firm organization to facilitate catastrophic bond and reinsurance, managed account, swap offering  structure and framework across front, middle to back office operations and controls. Collaborated with re-insurance pioneer manager to facilitate pragmatic growth and help win institutional assets from leading QIBs.
    Anchor Risk Advisors
    For a well established multi-strategy private fund investment advisory firm managed by former manager of Wellington Asset Management, collaborated with CFO on firm wide gap analysis across private fund offerings & organizational framework to materially reduce legacy costs and augment solicitation strategy geared toward institutional investors for its multiple hedge fund, private equity and managed accounts.
    Schneider Capital
    For well established private equity loan origination strategy and firm, engaged to collaborate with CEO to provide diagnostic review, compliance gap analysis, recommendations and execute solutions to attract assets post conversion from a conventional closed end private equity fund  to an open ended hedge fund structure.
    Edgewood Capital
    Engaged by well known New York law firm to collaborate and provide private fund expertise to a Swedish based private fund manager in connection with U.S. sub-advisory relationship to manage a reinsurance strategy for a large US alternative asset manager represented by global private fund manager law firm.
    Ress Capital
    For a global asset management managing the largest fixed income strategy in Asia at the time, our principal executed the strategy and spectrum of offshore structures, teams and people to provide both strategic and execution support to client's CEO and CIO across a global best practices infrastructure of fund formation, compliance framework, operational risk management, legal and marketing framework for a global fund of funds platform managed by several SEC investment and commodity advisers managing AUM in excess of 10 billion.  Our principal worked closely as a trusted adviser to the CEO across marketing and business strategy and the coordinated execution of numerous private funds and managed accounts for a global fund of funds business.
    Nikko Asset Management
    Pioneer portfolio manager, of such firms as BNP Paribas, AQR and Magnetar Capital.  Executed fund formation, corporate governance, asset raising, marketing and private fund advisor build-out and on-going support leading to the growth of a successful U.S. strategy specializing in closed end trading funds across teams and people to mange the assets of high net worth, family offices and institutional investors.
    Closed End Trading LLC
    Engaged by global firm AON COO Chicago subsidiary to perform diagnostic review and analysis review across execution and support of $250 Ml AUM launch of an offshore private equity fund of funds structure.
    Aon Consulting
    For global Bank of Ireland ICAV structure, quarterbacked the execution of cornerstone strategy for offshore manager of managers structure across fund formation, collaborating with outside counsel, organizational and regulatory framework, sub-advisory relationship, fund manager due diligence, onboarding and operations for spectrum of US and offshore manager strategies to facilitate strategic investor, Guggenheim Asset Management.
    Guggenheim Asset Management
    Principal facilitated ongoing seed relationships and joint venture, investor due diligence readiness, and ultimate investments by well known re-insurance institutional investors and execution of an offshore CAT bond (insurance linked) strategy and US Investment Adviser structure to facilitate strategy and additional investments.
    XL Re, Bermuda Reinsurance Company

    Our blog

    Commodities Futures Trading Commission on September 12 issued final changes to Rule 4.7 “qualified eligible person” (QEP) applicable to private funds and managed accounts.

    Under the prior definition of a QEP, certain persons (including natural persons who are accredited investors, among others) must meet...

    How to Mitigate Offshore Start Up Fund Formation Costs

    Relying on our years of pragmatic legal and business fund manager experience and know-how across the fund manager organization enterprise,...

    Read more

    A New Business Ownership Disclosure Rule Launched

    A new business ownership disclosure rule became effective in 2024 but many do not know about

    Read more