GREENWICH, Conn., March 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Duff Capital Advisors (DCA),a global institutional investment advisory and management firm founded byPhil Duff, launched today with up to $500 million of equity capital fromLindsay Goldberg, a leading private equity firm based in New York. DCA isalso in discussions with several other leading global financialinstitutions to provide $1.0-$1.5 billion to seed the investment strategiesbeginning in spring 2008. DCA will provide customized solutions to help organizations meet theirlong-term funding liabilities by integrating a complete suite of investmentstrategies with advice and proprietary liability, risk management andallocation tools and services. The firm will partner with pension funds,insurance companies, foundations, endowments, and sovereign funds todevelop solutions that align the client's assets with the duration ofliabilities within specific risk and return goals. This unique asset andrisk allocation framework will allow clients to manage their portfolios ina holistic fashion. DCA's institutional-quality operational infrastructure and riskmanagement capability will be combined with a broad array of strategieswith an emphasis on non-correlated, alpha-generating alternativeinvestments, including absolute return strategies, private equity and realassets. These strategies will be able to be combined in multiple ways,utilizing leverage, hedging tools, overlays or wrappers to customizesolutions that meet clients' objectives and liability and risk profiles. The firm is currently in active discussions with several experiencedinvestment professionals and teams to join DCA, negotiating access tocapacity with other leading external managers and reviewing acquisitionopportunities. DCA is designed to offer investment professionals and teamsa range of diverse portfolio management opportunities, enabling investmenttalent to develop and focus on their expertise and strategies. Recent studies have shown many pension funds are massivelyunder-funded. Experts estimate that approximately 73 of the 100 largestcorporate plans and 85 of the largest 100 public plans are under-funded byapproximately $50 billion and $330 billion respectively. DCA is wellpositioned to provide solutions to this under-funding problem by offeringunique, holistic investment solutions and cutting edge strategies and riskmanagement. "Organizations with long-term liabilities are finding it increasinglydifficult to close their asset/liability gaps given lower returnexpectations, higher correlations and increased competition. Institutionalinvestors and pension funds in particular are increasingly turning toalternatives to gain alpha, while facing growing pressure to manage riskconservatively," said Mr. Duff. "Next generation solutions are needed andwe believe a new approach is required to meet those needs." Mr. Duff continued, "We are thrilled to partner with Lindsay Goldbergas we launch Duff Capital Advisors and expect to work with them to expandour business via acquisitions and the purchase of assets and pension plans.Their investment with our firm recognizes our shared vision and our beliefthat true value lies with a client-focused firm founded on the principlesof partnership, transparency and skills-based investing." Lindsay Goldberg is pleased to partner with Duff Capital Advisors,which they believe represents a new paradigm in investment management. Theysee Mr. Duff as a true visionary as he and his team work to developcustomized financial solutions for large asset owners. Prior to establishing Duff Capital Advisors, Mr. Duff co-foundedFrontPoint Partners, a $9 billion alternative investment management firmwith multiple strategies based off a central platform. FrontPoint Partnerswas launched in November 2001 with $500 million in assets and was acquiredby Morgan Stanley in December 2006. Mr. Duff was previously Chief OperatingOfficer of Tiger Management and held a variety of positions at MorganStanley, including Chief Financial Officer and a member of the firm'sManagement Committee. Mr. Duff is joined by a world-class team of over 20 professionals,including managers and advisors, with a breadth of experience across thefinancial services industry and a significant history of working together.The Partners comprising the senior management team of the firm follows.
-- Eileen Murray joins as President. She was formerly the Head of Global Finance, Operations and Technology and a member of the Executive Committee, the Executive Board and the Management Committees at both Morgan Stanley and CSFB. She will devote the majority of her time to helping DCA continue to build out its infrastructure, develop new operational lines of business and focus on talent development. -- Jack Zimmermann, a former Partner at FrontPoint Partners and President of Van Kampen Funds Distribution Company, has been named Head of the Client Advisory Group. -- Kevin Becker, the Chief Investment Strategist will manage all of the internally developed and partnered investment products. He has most recently managed his own long/short equity hedge fund, Claiborne Capital Group. Prior to Claiborne, Kevin was a senior partner at SAC Capital Management, where he ran a portfolio and developed the firm's European business, and was a Managing Director at Tiger Management. -- Lisa Polsky, Head of Global Investment Solutions, will focus on risk management, product development and building customized solutions for clients. She has run derivative and hedge fund businesses at Citigroup and Bankers Trust, and Prime Brokerage at Merrill Lynch. Lisa also served as the Chief Risk Officer for Morgan Stanley. -- Perry Poulos, joins as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer, from Morgan Stanley where he was a Managing Director supporting Global Operations and Technology. -- Shelley Leibowitz, appointed Chief Information Officer. Her prior roles included Chief Information Officer at the corporate level of Morgan Stanley and Chief Information Officer positions at Greenwich Capital Markets, Greenwich NatWest and Barclays Capital. -- Scott Cooper, Head of Business Development, joins after 20 years in Institutional Equities and Corporate Finance at Morgan Stanley, where he led various business initiatives in Toronto, London and New York. In addition, Paul Kimball will serve as a special advisor, assistingDCA in business strategy and client relationship development, includingsovereign banks. He also will be working closely with clients on macroinvestment outlooks. Most recently, Mr. Kimball started Sagebrush Capital,which focuses on alternative energy opportunities. Prior to Sagebrush, Mr.Kimball helped establish and later co-headed the global Foreign ExchangeDepartment of Morgan Stanley. During his tenure, Mr. Kimball was namedChairman of the Foreign Exchange Committee, a global industry associationestablished by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. DCA is located at 100 Field Point Road, Greenwich, CT 06830. They canbe reached at (203) 742-5200. Please visit
Duff Capital Advisors Launches With $500 Million of Equity Capital Support
March 05, 2008, 10:31 p.m. EST 6 Min Read
