RPM - Reflections on Private Markets

In this episode of RPM, co-host Maribel Yoo hands the mic to Margaret McKnight, Partner and Head of Portfolio Solutions for Real Estate, to interview Jeff Giller, Partner Head of StepStone Real Estate, about our recent whitepaper, Bull market for real estate secondaries. They discuss: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of RPM, Akhilan Nesaratnam, Thomas Dupont and Carlos Sahuquillo from our private equity team in London join co-host Michael Venne to discuss Europe’s private equity landscape. The conversation surrounds common misconceptions about Europe’s investment opportunities, unpacking four key European sectors and the topics of our recent papers: European small and middle market buyouts, the Nordic region, European growth equity and European healthcare. They discuss: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of RPM, Todd Lapenna and Sean Ebsary from our infrastructure team, join co-host Michael Venne to discuss infrastructure’s middle market following the release of our recent whitepaper, Infrastructure’s Middle Market: An emerging opportunity. They touch on topics including: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of RPM, Jeff Giller, Partner and Head of Real Estate, and Margaret McKnight, Partner and Head of Portfolio Solutions for Real Estate, rejoin co-host Maribel Yoo to discuss our Fall 2023 House Views on the state of the real estate market. They cover: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of RPM, Christian Frei, StepStone head of risk joins Michael Venne to discuss some of the main insights from StepStone's recent collaboration with GIC: a whitepaper that provides an overview of private debt investment opportunities and a framework for building an optimal private debt portfolio. They cover a range of topics including: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of RPM, Michael and Maribel hand the reins to StepStone’s natural capital team for a primer on carbon markets and offsetting. Though these markets are imperfect and subject to criticisms—some of which we agree with—ultimately, we believe carbon markets are part of the climate solution. Join StepStone’s global head of responsible investment, Suzanne Tavill, and Ryan Ramsey, a principal on StepStone’s infrastructure team as they cover a range of topics from: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of RPM, we’re continuing our conversation about the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA). More than a year out from the Act’s passing, details of the tax laws and mechanisms for deployment are being finalized. Joining co-host Maribel Yoo to revisit this topic is Bhavika Vyas, managing director and member of the responsible investment team at StepStone and special guest Julio Friedmann, Chief Scientist at Carbon Direct. Our guests cover: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of RPM, John Bohill, a partner on our private debt team, joins co-host Michael Venne to discuss the rapid growth and evolution of private debt's secondary market. Among other things, they cover: - Nuances characterizing this market (01:14); - Private debt as a liquidity tool (03:09); - Discounts being half the picture (04:54); - Data’s role in mitigating risk (08:59) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As bond yields have risen, some investors have been questioning whether direct lending (DL) offers the same value proposition as it once did, but yields are only part of the equation. In this episode of RPM, Fabian Körzendörfer, a Managing Director on our private debt team, joins co-host Maribel Yoo to discuss how direct lending may offer attractive risk-adjusted returns. They discuss: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of RPM, Jeff Giller, Partner and Head of Real Estate, and Margaret McKnight, Partner and Head of Portfolio Solutions for Real Estate join co-host Maribel Yoo to discuss our recently released Spring 2023 House Views. They discuss: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When the economy shrinks, institutions tend to seek reassurance from larger, more established private equity fund managers. This comes at the expense of small, emerging and by extension, diverse managers, which some regard as riskier than their larger, “more proven” counterparts. In this episode of RPM, Daniel Krikorian, a principal on our private equity team, joins co-host Michael Venne to discuss why investors should fight the urge to cut back on SBO and if anything, lean in. They discuss: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of RPM, Bhavika Vyas, managing director and member of the Responsible Investing Team, as well as special guest Julio Friedmann, chief scientist at Carbon Direct, join co-host Maribel Yoo to discuss the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA). They cover: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of RPM, Lisa Larsson, managing director on our portfolio management team, joins co-host Michael Venne to discuss the recently trending net asset value (NAV) lending. They discuss: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Over the next five years, private capital assets under management are projected to grow from $10 trillion to $17 trillion. One of the leading reasons: the individual investor. In this episode of RPM, Bob Long, CEO of StepStone Private Wealth joins Michael Venne to discuss this trend. Among other things they cover: The historical barriers to entry (3:24);The emergence of tender funds (8:12);An overview of two of our retail products (12:48); andLiquidity management (18:56)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of RPM, Aditya Raina and Laura White, two members of our Private Equity team, join co-host Maribel Yoo to discuss StepStone’s 2023 outlook for private equity. They discuss: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nature provides the building blocks for civilization, arable soil, air and water filtration, ore and minerals for extraction, and economic and recreational opportunities. In almost any other context, you would expect to pay for these services. But with nature, we are wont to expect these things for nothing. Hence the title for the white paper we released late last year, “We don't value nature.” As financiers and economists, we are wont to look at nature and try to derive an ROI. And for that reason, institutions have underrated nature—the returns were not competitive with other asset classes. Part of the reason for that is society had not properly placed a price on all the benefits and pleasure it derives from nature. And by doing so, the thinking goes, nature will find a place in investors’ portfolios. On this episode of RPM, Susanne Tavill, StepStone’s Head of Responsible Investment, discusses nature-based investing. Among other things we discuss: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of RPM, Ariel Goldblatt and Mark Tsang, senior members of our private debt team join co-host Maribel Yoo to discuss StepStone’s 2023 outlook for private debt. They discuss: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of RPM, John Avirett, a partner on our venture capital and growth equity team discusses the venture capital ecosystem as we navigate this challenging economic environment. With the right market conditions, and venture capital’s ability to navigate volatile markets, perhaps now is the time to take a closer look at this strategy. We discuss: See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of RPM, Qi Liu from our data, science and engineering team discusses one of our newest tools – the daily valuation engine (DVE). Typically, private market investors must wait anywhere from two to four months after quarter end to see how the value of their portfolios has changed; DVE, as the name implies, allows them to make this estimate well before general partners report. Among other things, we discuss: How DVE’s accuracy compares with alternative approaches (3:40);The mathematical principles (8:06) and key data inputs (12:14) that the model relies on; and Some of the ways in which investors might use DVE, from annual reporting to allocation planning (16:57). See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of RPM, we're talking about growth equity with partner John Coelho. However you define "growth," its champions regard it as a proverbial Goldilocks that offers VC upside with buyout-type risk (1:01).After analyzing 25,000+ private equity deals in SPI, we found that growth delivered a higher multiple than VC and lower loss rates than buyouts (11:05). This was especially true of investments in the software sector, which for several years has been the fastest growing and best performing sector in private equity.Because growth equity companies tend to be profitable and less reliant upon leverage, we find them to be particularly attractive during periods of market uncertainty (13:21). Because growth contains parts of both buyouts and VC, and it is in a strong position to benefit from technological tailwinds, it should be an important part of any well rounded private equity portfolio. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.