Alternative investments are asset classes outside traditional stocks, bonds, and cash — including private equity, venture capital, hedge funds, real estate, and distressed assets — offering diversification and higher return potential.
At CRAGSI, we define alternative investments (or "alts") as the broad category of investment assets that fall outside the traditional categories of publicly traded stocks, investment-grade bonds, and cash equivalents. Alternative investments include private equity, venture capital, hedge funds, real estate, infrastructure, commodities, collectibles, and — most relevant to CRAGSI's practice — distressed securities, bankruptcy claims, and other special situations assets.
Alternative investments have grown dramatically as a share of institutional portfolios over the past three decades. Pension funds, endowments, sovereign wealth funds, and family offices have allocated an increasing share of assets to alternatives in search of diversification, yield, and the illiquidity premium. The PBGC — CRAGSI's institutional client — manages a portfolio spanning VC, PE, private credit, concentrated equities, real estate, and intellectual property.
The appeal of alternatives is also their challenge: they are difficult to value, difficult to exit, and difficult to benchmark. CRAGSI specializes in the most challenging corner of the alternatives universe: special situations assets that resist conventional pricing and management — creating persistent opportunities for patient, expert investors willing to do the work.
Related CRAGSI services: Valuations · Asset Dispositions · Independent Fiduciary & Governance Services