Longreach Alternatives is launching a specialised distribution and advisory unit to meet the rising demand for alternative investment strategies.
The Australian-based alternatives asset manager was founded in 2016 by chief executive Samuel Mann and chief operating officer Andrew Flitcroft, having grown to $3.1 billion in assets under management and advice (as of 30 June 2024).
It has announced the launch of Longreach Capital Advisors (LCA), a specialised distribution and advisory unit created to provide Australian investors with access to alternative investment strategies and solutions.
Andrew King, former head of distribution at Channel Capital, has joined LCA as a partner alongside Sam Edwards, an existing partner at Longreach, who will be a co-founding partner of the new unit.
Katrina Christie has also been appointed as managing director at LCA to round out the senior leadership team, who previously spent 14 years at Macquarie Group. Several members within the existing Longreach team will also transition to strengthen the new initiative.
LCA was established in response to the increasing demand by institutional and sophisticated investors in Australia and APAC for diversified exposure to alternative investment solutions.
Research from Praemium and CoreData earlier this year highlighted the 23 per cent rise in funds allocated to alternatives as the asset class approaches $6 billion in funds under administration. Additionally, more than 17 per cent of high-net-worth investors are now diversifying their portfolios with alternative assets.
According to Longreach, the initiative will build on the previous success of the Longreach PG3 Royalty Opportunities Fund, which was launched in May this year in conjunction with LGT Crestone and PG3 AG. It offers access to a select group of idiosyncratic and traditionally hard-to-reach asset classes with low correlation to both traditional and private market investments.
“LCA marks a significant step in Longreach’s evolution, enhancing our distribution capabilities and providing Australian investors access to exceptional global alternative managers,” Mann said.
“The combined expertise of Andrew King, Sam Edwards and Katrina Christie, alongside Longreach’s robust institutional framework, makes LCA a powerful platform for success.”
Meanwhile, King commented: “There is increasing demand for high-quality alternative investment solutions across the region, with particular focus now on the ‘alpha’ sources within alternative allocations. We are all excited about what we will be offering our clients and partners.”
