Latest Research
Leverage in Private Equity Real Estate
March 21, 2022This paper reviews the scant academic literature on the use of leverage in institutional private equity real estate (PERE) investments and summarize a number of stylized facts. The bulk of available evidence supports the view that leverage, as used by high-risk PERE funds, does not adequately compensate limited partners for the risk that it adds. More
Performance Analysis and Attribution with Alternative Investments
January 24, 2022This white paper provides a summary of existing methods and current research on performance analysis and attribution for complex portfolios that include investments such as hedge funds and private investment funds. We summarize the main challenges of analyzing portfolios with illiquid assets and provide updated analysis for several important asset classes. More
Asset Allocation with Private Equity
January 21, 2022We survey the literature on the private equity partnership arrangement from the perspective of an outside investor (limited partner). We examine how the partnership arrangement fits into a broader portfolio of investments, and we consider the methods and difficulties in performance measurement, both at the fund level and at the asset class level. We follow with a discussion of performance persistence and the skill and pricing power of both general and limited partners. More
Recent News & Media
Is the U.S. Economy at a Boiling Point, or Just Simmering?
January 19, 2022As the U.S. continues to face COVID-19 and supply chain disruptions, experts debate just how worked up the economy is in its current state. This Kenan Insight serves as the first in a two-part point-counterpoint series, in which Kenan Institute Executive Director Greg Brown and Chief Economist Gerald Cohen hash out the arguments both for and against an overheating economy. More