COVID-19, political unrest, market volatility increase the importance of private markets in 2021 and beyond, according to Mercer research

NEW YORK, Jan. 12, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- New strategic research from Mercer focuses on what the coming year holds for alternatives, outlining some of the issues investors may want to follow closely in an effort to optimize their portfolios.

"We are seeing that though investors have been tested this year, the experiences of previous crises have made them more resilient. There were unorthodox challenges such as not being able to vet new managers in person, but clients continued to put capital to work, especially with existing investment manager relationships across all private market segments," said Raelan Lambert, global head of alternatives at Mercer.

She continued, "In 2021, investors should consider stretching their risk appetites and consider their allocation to real estate. Although the pandemic will continue to challenge the property market, 2021 is likely to be an opportune time for entering the asset class with a medium- to longer-term investment horizon. Initially, investors should prioritize allocations to the largest, most-liquid markets, where price discovery is furthest along."

The white paper, Private market challenges: Optimizing your portfolio and top considerations for private markets in 2021, includes issues such as:

• Real estate: the state of current market conditions and opportunities to potentially capitalize on post-COVID changes.
• Natural resources: the reasons behind the significant challenges facing the market and the opportunities inherent in the sector.
• Infrastructure: the growth and attractive performance of the market as well as the challenges associated with managing significant market changes.
• Private debt: how the landscape has changed from the global financial crisis to the 2020 pandemic.
• US private equity and venture capital markets: how advice that clients receive from their legal counsels on terms and conditions could potentially misalign with managers' interests.
• European private equity: how the COVID-19 virus has compounded the uncertainty created by Brexit.
• Asian private equity: the effect of the pandemic and the ongoing political tension between the US and China.

Click here for the full 2021 Private Market Challenges paper.

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