Evolution of Diversification and the New Asset Classes:

NEW YORK, March 23, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- In an effort to share the latest perspectives from inside the industry, Genworth Financial Wealth Management (GFWM), a subsidiary of Genworth Financial, Inc. (NYSE: GNW), hosted a media-only roundtable event in New York City yesterday. The panel discussion led by Gurinder Ahluwalia, president of GFWM, featured Anne Lester, managing director and senior portfolio manager with J.P. Morgan Asset Management's Global Multi-Asset Group (GMAG), Jon Sundt, CEO and president of Altegris Advisors, and Michael Abelson, CFA, senior vice president of Investment & Product Management with GFWM.

Lester kicked off the discussion by introducing key market drivers and highlighting the continued volatility in today's unstable economy. Sundt talked at length about the growth of alternatives, specifically addressing the need for investment portfolios to include broader diversification and non-correlating assets. Abelson discussed the increasing interest in using alternative assets in investment portfolios, particularly among high-net-worth investors.

"With a volatile market, investors need to better understand true diversification, specifically the allocation of assets across different classes," says Ahluwalia. "The conditions over the last few years have proven that traditional approaches may not be enough and that there is a need for investors to employ new strategies, potentially including alternative investments. Financial advisors are a critical component to helping investors incorporate alternatives into their portfolios."

Key takeaways about diversification and alternatives include:

• Investors and advisors are increasingly interested in including alternatives as a key component in managing volatility in investment portfolios. What is more, there is a lot of confusion in the market place about using alternatives in investment portfolios.
• Alternative investments, such as managed futures, are investments with historically low-correlation to traditional asset classes such as stocks and bonds.
• GFWM believes investors who work with a financial advisor have greater potential to effectively use alternatives to lower volatility in their portfolios.
• GFWM's top-performing advisors report that they allocate more than 27% of their overall portfolio toward alternatives. Leading industry reports validate this trend and suggest that this number is expected to increase.

Ahluwalia concluded the event with an unveiling of GFWM's plans to launch Genworth Portfolio Solutions (GPS)on May 1st. Building on the success of the platform and providing customizable and diversified investment mandates, these solutions will help advisors invest in new proprietary mutual funds, alternatives, and fixed income. GPS supports Genworth's philosophy that advisors can better manage client emotions and outcomes by diversifying portfolios across four approaches to asset allocation -- Strategic, Tactical Constrained(SM), Tactical Unconstrained(SM) and Absolute Return -- as well as alternative investments.

The group fielded questions from reporters (most of whom cover the advisory business or personal finance for industry print and online outlets) about recent trends in alternative investments. GFWM hosts roundtable discussions on a periodic basis. For more information on future events, please contact Sahana Jayaraman at [email protected]

About Genworth Financial Wealth Management, Inc.

Genworth Financial Wealth Management, Inc., helps independent financial advisors build great businesses by providing comprehensive support across every phase of their operation. We offer a sophisticated investment management platform, robust client relationship tools and support, and innovative practice management programs that combine leading-edge industry research with real-world expertise and experience.  A wholly owned subsidiary of Genworth Financial, Inc., GFWM has over $20 billion in assets on its platform and helps over 6,000 advisors meet their clients' wealth management and investment needs. For more information, visit www.genworthwealth.com.

About Genworth Financial

Genworth Financial, Inc. (NYSE: GNW) is a leading Fortune 500 global financial security company.  Genworth has more than $100 billion in assets and employs approximately 6,500 people with a presence in more than 25 countries.  Its products and services help meet the investment, protection, retirement and lifestyle needs of more than 15 million customers.  Genworth operates through three segments: Retirement and Protection, International and U.S. Mortgage Insurance. Its products and services are offered through financial intermediaries, advisors, independent distributors and sales specialists.  Genworth Financial, which traces its roots back to 1871, became a public company in 2004 and is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia.  For more information, visit Genworth.com.  From time to time Genworth releases important information via postings on its corporate website.  Accordingly, investors and other interested parties are encouraged to enroll to receive automatic email alerts and Really Simple Syndication (RSS) feeds regarding new postings.  Enrollment information is found under the "Investors" section of Genworth.com.

About Altegris

The Altegris Companies have approximately $2 billion in client assets and provide clearing services to accounts representing $800 million in institutional assets. Altegris has developed a platform of premier alternative investments designed to meet the needs of investment professionals and investors seeking portfolio diversification through the use of historically low-correlated investments. The six-member investment committee features professionals from Altegris Advisors and other Altegris Companies with an average of 20 years of investment experience and deep backgrounds in alternatives. Genworth Financial purchased the Altegris Companies in late 2010. GFWM and Altegris Advisors are affiliated investment advisers registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

SOURCE Genworth Financial, Inc.