Insights and News

Ben Receives Conditional Trust Banking Charter from Kansas State Banking Commissioner

Ben announced the issuance of a conditional trust banking charter from the Kansas State Bank Commissioner to establish a fiduciary financial institution within the State of Kansas. The conditional charter, issued July 1, 2021, marks the beginning of Ben’s role as pilot under a new set of industry regulations enacted within the State of Kansas through the Technology Enabled Fiduciary Financial Institutions (TEFFI) Act.

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Ben announced the creation of a newly formalized Credit Portfolio Risk & Quantitative Analytics team led by Dr. Samuel Hikspoors who will serve as the company’s Credit Risk Officer. The new department is key to the future as the company looks to expand its current offerings and grow.

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The reasons why an General Partner (GP) may want to exit a fund can vary wildly, from limiting the losses from a non-performing investment, to optimizing investor relationships or seeking an edge for fundraising efforts. However, the reason why a GP exits a given fund matters far less than how they go about planning for and taking this critical final step in the private equity investment process. Exits can have a profound impact on an investment’s return, and this article briefly discusses a few of the most frequently used fund exit strategies and provides guidance for planning a successful exit.

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Liquidity: it is an important element for every manager of alternative assets funds, but it can often be the most challenging type of service to provide. Alternative funds, like private equity, private debt, private real estate and fund-of-funds, are usually structured as illiquid investments. This issue of providing liquidity is compounded for investment advisors who manage funds where high net worth individuals and small-to-mid-sized institutions make up a substantial portion of their investor base, since so few liquidity providers service these type of investors. In this quick guide, we will discuss three hypothetical scenarios that might prompt an investment advisor to seek liquidity for alternative assets and provide an overview of possible challenges.

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As the market continues to recover, private fund investment advisors with a long-term perspective understand that providing liquidity—and therefore, partnering with a reliable liquidity provider—is essential. Locating the right liquidity provider means conducting a detailed analysis of several firms and what they have to offer, from pricing to the quality of their bids to the integrity of their IT systems. The following seeks to provides with a framework for evaluating and selecting the best liquidity provider for their needs.

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In a Q&A published June 8, 2021 in industry publication Private Fund CFO, Ben Chief Fiduciary Officer Derek Fletcher gave details about the new law enacted in Kansas, the Technology Enabled Fiduciary Financial Institutions Act (TEFFI) that grants Ben a banking trust charter on July 1. We would like to have a collaborative effort among the industry to discuss the legislation, to discuss rules and regulations and standards so that there could be a unified voice,” Derek told Private Fund CFO reporter Graham Bippart.

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Dallas – May 10, 2021 – Ben announced its role as pilot under new industry regulations enacted by the State of Kansas through the Technology Enabled Fiduciary Financial Institutions (TEFFI) Act. The new law, effective July 1, 2021, allows for the chartering and creation of trust banks known as TEFFIs, which will finance alternative assets held in Kansas trusts and provide qualified custodial and trustee services within the State of Kansas.

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As the designated pilot for the Kansas TEFFI Act, Ben is partnering with legislators, regulators, and industry stakeholders to ensure a smooth rollout of the new legislation ahead of wider adoption.

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Brad Heppner tells Fox Business anchor Liz Claman about Ben’s strategy for alternative assets and how a new law in Kansas aims to make the state a key financing hub for the $8.8 trillion alternative asset industry.

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Maria Rutledge, Ben’s Managing Director, Technology, has been named the company’s first Chief Technology Officer.

In her new role, Maria will oversee all of Ben’s proprietary systems, customized data management solutions, artificial intelligence and automation, and robust application stack as Ben seeks to meet growing demand for liquidity and other services in the alternatives market.

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Maximizing the Opportunity in Private Markets 5-Year Outlook: Macroeconomic Considerations & Market Impacts DEVELOPED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH OXFORD ECONOMICS

Trends in broad policy decisions and macroeconomics along with the impacts on the markets continue to provide vital context to investors’ allocation decisions. Ben partnered with Oxford Economics to bring you these 4 Macroeconomic Considerations and 3 Market Impacts discussed here as well as in Ben’s new Private Markets report (available inside).

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Maximizing the Opportunity in Private Markets Behind the Curtain of TPM: Ben’s Proprietary Alternative Asset Portfolio Management Tool

In order to fully harvest the value of private markets Ben believes strategic asset allocation and active portfolio management are crucial. At Ben, we call this proprietary framework Total Portfolio Management (TPM) in Ben’s new Private Markets report.

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Video Library: A Discussion of the State of the Alternatives Market A discussion of the state of the alternatives market with Oxford Economics’ Global Chief Economist Innes McFee and Ben’s Chief Risk Officer Yuri Mushkin

This timely discussion covers a range of issues that are top-of-mind for investors, from the impact of COVID-19 to potential risk factors on the horizon.

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Maximizing the Opportunity in Private Markets 2021 Private Market Illustrations: Baseline and Bear Forecasts

Join Ben’s Risk Management Team as they utilize TPM, Ben’s proprietary asset allocation tool, to illustrate two forecasts for private market portfolio construction. This preview to the forecasts includes key findings and access to our Private Markets report. The report includes a deeper discussion and analysis of the mechanics of TPM and forecast methodology.

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Maximizing the Opportunity in Private Markets Infographic: The Growing Demand for Secondary Market Liquidity from Alternative Assets

Explore the facts and figures that comprise the marketplace need for the growing demand for secondary market liquidity from alternative assets. From here, you may also gain access to Ben’s Private Markets report which includes a more thorough analysis of portfolio construction methodology and the resulting essentiality for liquidity in the marketplace.

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Tapping the Liquidity Locked in Alternative Assets Part I: Realizing the Need for Early Liquidity of Alternative Assets

In a series of five installments from the white paper, “Tapping the Liquidity Locked in Alternative Assets,” Ben Founder and CEO Brad Heppner discusses how high net worth individuals and small-to-mid-sized institutions can potentially tap liquidity for their alternative investment at any time – at or near Net Asset Value – with the same flexibility as large institutional investors.

DALLAS – December 17, 2020 – The Beneficient Company Group announced it has hired two deeply experienced Managing Directors to strengthen the firm’s Underwriting and Originations teams.

Tapping the Liquidity Locked in Alternative Assets Part II: The Lock-up Period of the Typical Alternative Asset Explained

Understanding the “J-curve.” Our second white paper installment discusses why alternative assets have such a long lock-up – and how an understanding of a typical private equity fund’s return stream can potentially help you earn at or near net asset value.

Ben’s Chief Risk Officer Yuri Mushkin was featured in a story about Ben’s recent White Paper “The Case for Rebalancing Private Portfolios and Secondary Market Liquidity.” The story backed up Ben’s strategy to serve the market for secondary market liquidity, saying that “investors would get better returns if they could periodically rejigger their private markets portfolios based on macro factors and economic cycles, such as the recession caused by the pandemic.”

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Tapping the Liquidity Locked in Alternative Assets Part III: Three Reasons Why Investors Exit Alternative Assets Early

Liquidity when it’s needed. Liquidity when it’s wanted. Liquidity when it makes financial sense. White paper installment number three discusses why high net worth individuals and small-to-mid-sized institutional investors may want to exit alternative assets early.

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The best of both worlds. In white paper installment number four, learn how Ben may be able to help you enjoy potentially higher returns and better diversification from alternative assets – and the opportunity to exit when the time is right for you.

Tapping the Liquidity Locked in Alternative Assets Part V: How Leveling the Playing Field for Alternative Assets Liquidity Benefits All Participants

In our final white paper installment, see why a rising tide could lift all ships and how greater access to liquidity can potentially benefit individual investors, smaller institutions, wealth managers and general partners.

DALLAS – December 2, 2019 – The Beneficient Company Group, L.P. (“Ben”), which empowers investors with new liquidity options for their alternative asset portfolios, announced today that James Silk will join the company as Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer. This is a newly created senior leadership position located at Ben’s headquarters in Dallas and reporting to Ben Chairman and CEO Brad Heppner.

Brad Heppner, founder and CEO of Beneficient, joins CNBC’s Kelly Evans to discuss how investors can use its new platform to exchange ownership in an alternative asset for a cash-income producing Liquidity Bond.

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The Beneficient Company Group LP said it is forming a platform focused on high-net-worth individuals and small institutions seeking liquidity for their alternative asset investments. The company said it would use its own balance sheet and publicly traded stock and SEC-registered bonds of GWG Holdings in its effort to provide liquidity to investors.