Tag Archives: AAA

AAA says Real estate sales increases are Good news for Alternative Investors

July 6, 2012 straightlinepr Leave a comment

There has been some good news for those investing in real estate, in the form of stronger US property sales figures, according to Alternative Asset Analysis (AAA), an alternative investment advocacy group.

Boston, MA, July 05, 2012 – There has been some good news for those investing in real estate, in the form of stronger US property sales figures, according to Alternative Asset Analysis (AAA), an alternative investment advocacy group.

The National Association of Realtors has revealed that property sales had increased by over 10 per cent in April, compared with a year earlier. The Association added that sales could be up by as much as 13 per cent overall, by the end of the year.

Analysts believe that improving employment figures and falling mortgage costs are helping the industry get back on its feet, which means prices are rising. “This is great news for anyone who has invested in property over the past few years when prices were low,” claimed AAA’s analysis partner, Anthony Johnson.

“It is still a great time to buy homes in the US for investment purposes, as the market is bottoming out, which means the only way is up,” he added.

In fact, prices rose in 50 per cent of US cities in the first quarter of 2012 and this trend is expected to continue throughout the year. Mortgage rates have also fallen drastically. The average rate on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage a year ago was 4.5 per cent, while is now stands at just 3.66 per cent, according to a Freddie Mac survey.

Anthony Johnson stated, “investing in real estate has become more popular among those who want to diversify their portfolios against risk. It’s understandable that people want something tangible to show for their investments – especially after the economic crisis.

“We also support investment in other alternative asset classes, such as timberland, through firms like Greenwood Management, which runs sustainable plantations of non-native trees species in Brazil.” AAA claims that investing in alternatives can offer a more ethical option than stocks and bonds.

Contact:
Anthony Johnson
Alternative Asset Analysis
71 Commercial St
Boston, MA 02109-1320
617-939-9596
info@alternativeassetanalysis.com
http://www.alternativeassetanalysis.com

Business

AAA Urges Investors to Attend Cayman Islands Summit

July 5, 2012 staronepr Leave a comment

AAA is calling for those interested in alternative investing to attend the ‘Innovation in Alternative Investments: Seeing What’s Next’ summit in the Cayman Islands on 1-2 November. The event is part of the Cayman Alternative Investment Summit.

Boston, MA, USA, July 5, 2012 — Alternative Asset Analysis (AAA), an alternative investment advocacy group, is calling for those interested in alternative investing to attend the ‘Innovation in Alternative Investments: Seeing What’s Next’ summit in the Cayman Islands on 1-2 November. The event is part of the Cayman Alternative Investment Summit.

The summit is to take place at the Ritz-Carlton on Grand Cayman and delegates are expected to include a wide range of investors, academics and economists. They will attend in order to discuss ways in which a healthy alternative investment industry can be further established.

Sir Richard Branson, the founder of The Virgin Group, is to act as keynote speaker at the event, which comes at a time when the popularity of alternative investments is growing due to the volatility of stocks and bonds markets.

AAA’s analysis partner, Anthony Johnson, said, “Those attending this important summit will be able to contribute to the future of the industry – sharing ideas on how more can be done to bring alternatives into the mainstream.”

The Summit is being organized by Alternative Investment Research and is intended to bring together some of the best minds in the industry to examine how some of the challenges facing the industry can be dealt with.

Speaking to PR Newswire about the event, Sir Richard Branson said, “I am excited to be in the Cayman Islands for the Cayman Alternative Investment Summit.

“The event has a very impressive range of speakers from the alternative investment industry that will make for some very interesting discussions on the future of the industry.”

AAA supports a wide range of alternative investment routes, including ethical options such as forestry investment through firms like Greenwood Management, which operates plantations in Brazil, and impact investing. “We believe that ethical investment and making a healthy return are not mutually exclusive,” said Mr Johnson.

About Alternative Asset Analysis:
The remit of Alternative Asset Analysis is to analyse and provide news on the global performance of a wide range of alternative asset classes including, but not restricted to, commodities, real estate, forestry, foreign exchange, hedge funds, private equity and venture capital.

Media Contact:
Anthony Johnson
Alternative Asset Analysis
71 Commercial St
Boston, MA 02109-1320
617-939-9596
info@alternativeassetanalysis.com
http://www.alternativeassetanalysis.com

Business

Morgan Stanley Impact Investment Platform attracts support from AAA

June 23, 2012 staronepr Leave a comment

AAA is speaking out in support of the launch of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney’s Investing and Impact Platform, which is intended to make it easier for investors to put their money into socially responsible projects.

Boston, MA, USA, June 23, 2012 — Alternative Asset Analysis (AAA) is speaking out in support of the launch of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney’s Investing and Impact Platform, which is intended to make it easier for investors to put their money into socially responsible projects.

The investments offered through the platform are intended to be socially and environmentally responsible while offering risk-adjusted financial returns. “The project should enable more financial advisers offer a wide range of impact investing products to the masses and not just the wealthy”, explained AAA’s analysis partner, Anthony Johnson.

AAA claims that the market for impact investing is growing, with one in every eight dollars in the US invested in projects that are considered to have corporate and societal responsibility at their center. This totals a huge $3.07 trillion in value terms and shows that people do want to make responsible decisions that align their financial goals with their personal ethics.

Mr Johnson added, “The more products available, for those interested in impact investing, the better.

“We are seeing more and more individuals and even institutional investors looking for ways to make a difference while they make money and these kinds of platforms make it easier to do so.”

Morgan Stanley Smith Barney’s Paul Hatch, added, “With over 4 million clients who have more than $1.7 trillion of investable assets, we are in a unique position to extend the reach of an ‘investing with impact’ program to one of the largest sets of investors in the world.

“Even a fraction of this total represents a substantial amount that could be invested in support of the common good.”

AAA supports a range of ethical investment funds and projects and is especially keen to promote forestry investment as a profitable and ethical options. Mr Johnson explained, “investing in plantations, like the ones run by Greenwood Management and other firms in Brazil, offers a great diversifier for any portfolio and can also help to safeguard the future of sustainable forestry for generations to come.”

Media Contact:
Anthony Johnson
Alternative Asset Analysis
71 Commercial St
Boston, MA 02109-1320
617-939-9596
info@alternativeassetanalysis.com
http://www.alternativeassetanalysis.com

Business

AAA:’now could be the time to invest in Brazilian real estate’

June 22, 2012 straightlinepr Leave a comment

Brazilian property is becoming more affordable to investors from the UK, thanks to the growing strength of the pound Sterling against the Brazilian Real.

Boston, MA, June 21, 2012 – Brazilian property is becoming more affordable to investors from the UK, thanks to the growing strength of the pound Sterling against the Brazilian Real. This is great news for alternative investors who hope to make cash from buying real estate abroad – according to Alternative Asset Analysis (AAA).

A report in Property Wire explains that anyone who is looking to invest in Brazilian property will find that a home that was being sold for £111,000 at the beginning of last year will now be on sale for £90,000. This is the result of the Real losing around 25 per cent of its value against the pound.

The Property Wire report cites Brazilian Finance Minister, Guido Mantega, who said that from a Brazilian point of view, the weaker real is a positive thing. “The weak real is beneficial for the Brazilian economy because it makes Brazilian products more competitive, which means that Brazilian industry can better compete with imported products that become more expensive, and can export more.”

AAA’s analysis partner, Anthony Johnson, said, “Investing in Brazil has been an attractive option for alternative investors for several years now and real estate is perhaps one of the most attractive alternative asset classes.”

“Property in the UK is very expensive and those looking to make a healthy return on a real estate investment could do little better than buying property in Brazil at a time when the economy is still more healthy than many other nations, but the currency is falling in value.”

Alternative investments, such as real estate, precious metals, commodities and timberland are all increasingly attractive as the stock markets remain volatile, explained AAA. The alternative investment advocacy group backs ethical investments and impact investments. It claims that investing in sustainable forestry in Brazil, through firms like Greenwood Management, is a good option for those looking to make returns and reduce the risk in their portfolios.

Contact:
Anthony Johnson
Alternative Asset Analysis
71 Commercial St
Boston, MA 02109-1320
617-939-9596
info@alternativeassetanalysis.com
http://www.alternativeassetanalysis.com

Business

Pensions are turning to Alternatives, claims AAA

June 22, 2012 straightlinepr Leave a comment

AAA, an alternative investment advocacy group, is backing a report from Russell Investments, which claims that more and more institutional investors will be putting cash into alternative asset classes.

Boston, MA, June 21, 2012 – Alternative Asset Analysis (AAA), an alternative investment advocacy group, is backing a report from Russell Investments, which claims that more and more institutional investors will be putting cash into alternative asset classes.

Russell’s researchers talked to 114 institutional investors about their investment plans and found that many of them had already opted for more exposure to alternatives. The report found that 22.4 per cent of the investment portfolios, which totalled $1.1 trillion in value, was invested in alternatives including private equity, hedge funds and real estate investment trusts. This totalled $246 million in value terms.

Russells said that the research indicated that alternatives would become more mainstream over the coming three years as more and more pension funds take their cash out of stocks and bonds and put it into alternative asset classes.

AAA’s analysis partner, Anthony Johnson, said, “it’s telling that so many pension funds and other institutional investors are moving towards alternatives.

“The general consensus among investors is that equity markets are still extremely volatile and many are steering clear of stocks and shares as a result.”

According to Russells, a third of the investors questioned said that the “current low return environment in traditional assets” were to blame for their move towards alternatives. AAA claims that alternative assets can deliver healthier returns than traditional assets and hold less risk.

“Those investing in timberland, for example, can hold onto their asset and just watch it grow if timber prices are down when their trees reach maturity. It’s hard to think of any traditional asset class that physically grows over time.”

AAA supports ethical investment projects and sustainable forestry plantations such as those run by firms like Greenwood Management in Brazil. “Investing in plantations is becoming more attractive as people are increasingly looking for tangible assets in exchange for their investments.”

Contact:
Anthony Johnson
Alternative Asset Analysis
71 Commercial St
Boston, MA 02109-1320
617-939-9596
info@alternativeassetanalysis.com
http://www.alternativeassetanalysis.com

Business

AAA: Property Investors are keen to expand their Portfolios

June 16, 2012 staronepr Leave a comment

Property investors are increasing the size of their portfolios in the UK and elsewhere, as the appetite for alternative investments continues to take hold, according to AAA.

Boston, MA, USA, June 16, 2012 — Property investors are increasing the size of their portfolios in the UK and elsewhere, as the appetite for alternative investments continues to take hold, according to Alternative Asset Analysis (AAA).

The alternative investment advocacy group has cited figures from Paragon Mortgages, a lender in the UK, which claims that the average property investor, who buys property to rent out, has increased the size of their portfolio to 14.1 properties in the second quarter of the year. This is up from an average of 12.9 properties in the first quarter of 2012.

“These figures suggest that each buy-to-let investor has bought more than one new property since the beginning of the year, which is a major increase in portfolio size and an indicator that real estate is back on the list of safe investments,” stated Anthony Johnson, AAA’s analysis partner.

As well as the above figures, Paragon’s survey also found that 21 per cent of the investors questioned said they were planning to add to their portfolios in the third quarter of the year. This was up from just 18 per cent a year ago.

AAA claims that real estate is a strong investment at the moment, as the rental market all over the Western world Is extremely active, with many young professionals still looking for rental property. The US real estate market is also heading for recovery once more, according to Mr Johnson who highlighted the benefits of alternative investments of all kinds.

“We are seeing more and more people put their cash into tangible asset classes, such as real estate, timberland, gold and even art and antiques, as they search for alternatives to the volatile equity markets.”

AAA said that timberland is particularly ethical choice for alternative investors, with firms like Greenwood Management, in Brazil, running sustainably managed plantations of non-native trees.

Media Contact:
Anthony Johnson
Alternative Asset Analysis
71 Commercial St
Boston, MA 02109-1320
617-939-9596
info@alternativeassetanalysis.com
http://www.alternativeassetanalysis.com

Business

Capital Platform’s New Alternative Proposition attracts Praise from AAA

June 16, 2012 staronepr Leave a comment

Capital Platform’s new alternative investment proposition for investors in the UK has attracted praise from AAA.

Boston, MA, USA, June 16, 2012 — Capital Platform’s new alternative investment proposition for investors in the UK has attracted praise from Alternative Asset Analysis (AAA).

AAA, an alternative investment advocacy group, said that the new offering from Capital Platform will help to further underline the validity of a range of alternative asset classes on offer today.

The new initiative is intended to help investors to research various alternative investment options, with regards to factors such as ethics, compliance and returns. The firm’s director Darren Beddard, explained, “Capital Platform has been designed as a trusted source to give independent financial advisers and wealth managers everything they need to best serve clients in their alternative investment strategies.

“It offers an innovative proposition designed to make life easier for product providers and IFAs/wealth managers by delivering a range of products and services where we do the hard work for them.”

AAA is a keen supporter of alternative investments of many kinds and is a particular backer of ethical and responsible investment options in emerging markets. AAA’s analysis partner, Anthony Johnson, explained, “Today’s volatile stock markets have resulted in a huge number of individuals and institutional investors setting their sites on alternative asset classes.”

AAA supports a range of projects, including impact investing projects in Africa and sustainable forestry investment plans in Brazil. “Funds such a those set up and operated by Greenwood Management, for example, help to detract pressure form natural resources that are highly vulnerable, such as the native Amazon rainforest,” added Mr Johnson.

Speaking about the new Capital Platform offering, Mr Beddard added, “Capital Platform currently offers more than 20 products from a range of providers on which we conduct extensive due diligence.

“Whether unregulated collective investment schemes, enterprise investment schemes or venture capital trusts, we ensure the products on the platform conform to FSA and Financial Services and Markets Act rules.”

Media Contact:
Anthony Johnson
Alternative Asset Analysis
71 Commercial St
Boston, MA 02109-1320
617-939-9596
info@alternativeassetanalysis.com
http://www.alternativeassetanalysis.com

Business

AAA welcomes New Wine Fund from France

June 16, 2012 straightlinepr Leave a comment

AAA has welcomed news from France that asset management firm Uzes Gestion has launched a wine investment fund for those with an appetite for alternative asset classes.

Boston, MA, June 15, 2012 – Alternative Asset Analysis (AAA) has welcomed news from France that asset management firm Uzes Gestion has launched a wine investment fund for those with an appetite for alternative asset classes.

The fund, named the Uzes Grands Crus wine fund, has been launched in order to meet demand from those who believe that investing in fine wines is a good safe-haven option at a time when the stock markets are very volatile. “The fact that the Eurozone is still extremely unstable is putting European investors off of putting their money into the equity markets,” explained AAA’s analysis partner, Anthony Johnson.

Another firm that helps investors buy fine wines whose values are likely to increase in the future is Cavissima, which is run by Thierry Goddet. He explained more about the attraction of wine investments to the Financial Times readers: “With the debt crisis crippling financial markets, we’ve seen new investors flocking in, as they look for defensive investments.”

The new fund, launched by Uzes Gestion buys up cases of fine wines made by lesser known vineyards and for a reasonable price. It then hopes to store the wines and sell on at later date for more money – thus delivering solid returns to investors. The fine wine trade is growing at the moment, not least due to the increasing demand in China, where the newly wealthy population is developing a taste for the tipple.

Mr Johnson explained, “The fine wine investment market is driven by the fact that investors want something tangible in exchange for their cash. They are increasingly keen to obtain something with an intrinsic value, such as timber, art, wine and precious metals, instead of risking everything on the stock market, which has proven unstable in recent years.”

AAA backs ethical investments and many kinds of alternative asset classes, such as timberland investments through firms like Greenwood Management that operate in Brazil and Canada.

Contact;
Anthony Johnson
Alternative Asset Analysis
71 Commercial St
Boston, MA 02109-1320
617-939-9596
info@alternativeassetanalysis.com
http://www.alternativeassetanalysis.com

Business

Lifestyle investments are ‘Realistic option’, says AAA

June 16, 2012 straightlinepr Leave a comment

AAA is highlighting a recent article in the Huffington Post, detailing the growing popularity of ‘lifestyle investments’ as an alternative to traditional asset classes.

Boston, MA, June 15, 2012 – Alternative Asset Analysis (AAA) is highlighting a recent article in the Huffington Post, detailing the growing popularity of ‘lifestyle investments’ as an alternative to traditional asset classes.

The article begins by talking about the rising popularity of wine investments and the fact that fine wine investments have generated returns of 195 per cent over the past seven years, according to the London International Vintners Exchange (LIVEX). Demand for wine is growing in the emerging economies of China, Russia and Brazil – simply as a response to the growing wealth of the populations in these new economic ‘powerhouses.’

The fact that demand for wine is growing makes this a good time to experiment with so-called lifestyle investments such as wine, according to AAA’s analysis partner, Anthony Johnson. He said, “It’s easy to start small with these kinds of alternative investments.

“An investment of as little as £500 to £1,000 will enable you to purchase some incredibly good fine wines whose values could rise exponentially over the coming years.”

The Huffington Post article outlines the range of different funds investors can opt into if they would like to take a more official route towards lifestyle investments. For example, The Wine Source Fund is based on a range of fine wines and whiskies that combine to create what the fund calls “a balanced portfolio able to benefit from longer and shorter production cycles”.

Others specialise in older fine wines and even manage cellars for investors who need to keep their valuable investments in tiptop condition.

AAA backs a range of alternative investments and is keen to promote what there is to be gained from investing in something that interests you. “Those who are interested in fine wines, art and antiques and starting to realise that they can make money for heir hobbies.

“The same can be said for those who are keen to help promote sustainability and eco-investments, who can invest in sustainable forestry through firms like Greenwood Management,” added Mr Johnson.

Contact:
Anthony Johnson
Alternative Asset Analysis
71 Commercial St
Boston, MA 02109-1320
617-939-9596
info@alternativeassetanalysis.com
http://www.alternativeassetanalysis.com

Business

AAA Highlights Implications of Gold Demand Rise in China

June 15, 2012 staronepr Leave a comment

The increasing demand for gold in China is another indicator of the growing popularity of alternative investments around the world, claims AAA.

Boston, MA, USA, June 15, 2012 — The increasing demand for gold in China is another indicator of the growing popularity of alternative investments around the world, claims Alternative Asset Analysis, (AAA).

The Commercial Bank of China’s precious metals department claims that the demand for gold investments could increase by ten per cent this year. The growing demand for commodities like gold, silver and timber is down to a desire among investors to seek safe havens from the ongoing Eurozone crisis.

This is according to AAA’s analysis partner, Anthony Johnson. The seasoned asset manager said, “individual investors and institutional investors alike are all looking at ways of diversifying their portfolios to protect against risk.”

Zheng Zhiguang, the general manager of the Commercial Bank of China’s precious metals department, backed up AAA’s view. He told the Economic Times: “Investors here want to hold part of their assets in gold to hedge for the risks, especially now that the financial crisis has evolved into a sovereign crisis.”

The World Gold Council forecasts that China will exceed India this year as the largest market for gold bullion as more and more of the country’s new wealthy population seek safe havens for their cash. Mr Zhiguang added that Chinese investors are facing volatile equity markets and a poor real estate investment opportunities and are looking towards gold as a result.

AAA is an advocate of many varieties of alternative investments and claims that they are growing in popularity since the global economic crisis. “It’s not difficult to see why many people prefer to buy tangible assets of stocks and shares these days,” claimed Mr Johnson. He added, “Assets like timber, gold and fine wine have consistently outperformed the equity markets and also provide investors with an ethical choice.”

AAA advocates ethical investment, through projects such as the sustainable plantations run by Greenwood Management, which offers investors the chance to directly invest in timberland for as little as EUR10,000.

Media Contact:
Anthony Johnson
Alternative Asset Analysis
71 Commercial St
Boston, MA 02109-1320
617-939-9596
info@alternativeassetanalysis.com
http://www.alternativeassetanalysis.com