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San Francisco-based Fiat Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm, has raised $35 million in the closing of its Fund II, exceeding its targeted goal of $25 million.  The oversubscribed vehicle will use the capital to financially support early-stage companies that focus on financial technology, financial access, and AI innovation.  The fund, which is led by …

Henry AI Inc. has raised $16.5 million in Series A financing to expand its artificial intelligence platform for automating document-intensive work across commercial real estate transactions. FirstMark Capital led the round, with strategic participation from Thomson Reuters Ventures. Y Combinator, Susa Ventures, 1Sharpe, StoryHouse Ventures, Pioneer Fund, RXR Arden Digital Ventures, Karman Ventures and Coalition …

Asset-tokenized platform Securitize has launched the Neuberger Securitize High Income Tokenized Fund, marking it as the first high-yield bond fund with investment manager Neuberger Berman.  The fund aims to attract risk-adjusted returns by investing primarily in high-yield and fixed-income investments across public blockchain networks such as Avalanche, Ethereum, Solana, and Sui.  The move comes as …

Vestmark has been tapped by Vanguard to provide an expanded source of model portfolios to registered investment advisors, as asset classes and service preferences continue to be growing factors for clients.  Vanguard has launched the Vanguard Custom Model Portfolios, which aims to provide advisors with customized portfolios through the firm. Through its partnership, Vestmark will …

Registered investment adviser Curi Capital has sold a majority stake in The Vistria Group, a middle-market private investment firm.  The capital will go towards funding investments across M&A, recruitment, and technology.  Following the transaction, which is expected to close in late September, Curi’s current majority owner, Curi Holdings, will retain its stake alongside the RIA’s …

Vanguard has agreed to acquire Altruist, giving the asset-management giant direct ownership of a fast-growing technology and custody platform serving independent registered investment advisers. Financial terms were not disclosed, although The Wall Street Journal reported that the transaction values Altruist at approximately $4 billion. The acquisition is expected to close later this year, subject to …

Executive Summary The Treasury Department’s decision to double long-end bond buybacks produced the desired initial market response, but investors should not confuse a successful squeeze on crowded positions with a durable change in the interest rate outlook. The action can reduce the amount of duration the private market must absorb at the margin. In that …

Executive Summary Additional Tier 1, or AT1, bank bonds are trading at near-historic tight spreads despite their complex, loss-absorbing structures. With the ICE CoCo Index offering roughly 206 basis points over benchmark rates, well below its 385-basis-point historical median, investors may not be adequately compensated for coupon-cancellation, extension, and regulatory risks. As banks increasingly issue …

Registered investment adviser Curi Capital has sold a majority stake in The Vistria Group, a middle-market private investment firm.  The capital will go towards funding investments across M&A, recruitment, and technology.  Following the transaction, which is expected to close in late September, Curi’s current majority owner, Curi Holdings, will retain its stake alongside the RIA’s …

Vanguard has agreed to acquire Altruist, giving the asset-management giant direct ownership of a fast-growing technology and custody platform serving independent registered investment advisers. Financial terms were not disclosed, although The Wall Street Journal reported that the transaction values Altruist at approximately $4 billion. The acquisition is expected to close later this year, subject to …

Advisors Asset Management and Wilshire have launched the AAM Wilshire Infrastructure Fund, an interval fund designed to give individual investors access to private infrastructure assets historically concentrated among institutions such as pension plans and endowments. Sun Life Financial has committed $150 million in seed capital to the fund, which trades under the tickers AAWIX, AAWDX …

Future Standard has acquired a minority interest in infrastructure developer KDC, creating a partnership intended to move complex, capital-intensive projects from early development toward institutional financing and construction. Financial terms and conditions under which Future Standard may exercise its option to acquire control were not disclosed. KDC was co-founded by Future Standard CEO Edwin Conway …

Executive Summary The Treasury Department’s decision to double long-end bond buybacks produced the desired initial market response, but investors should not confuse a successful squeeze on crowded positions with a durable change in the interest rate outlook. The action can reduce the amount of duration the private market must absorb at the margin. In that …

Future Standard has acquired a minority interest in infrastructure developer KDC, creating a partnership intended to move complex, capital-intensive projects from early development toward institutional financing and construction. Financial terms and conditions under which Future Standard may exercise its option to acquire control were not disclosed. KDC was co-founded by Future Standard CEO Edwin Conway …

U.S. employers unexpectedly shed 23,000 jobs in July, falling far short of the 88,000 gain projected by economic consensus, according to data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The drop was compounded by sharp downward revisions to prior months. May payroll additions were revised down by 66,000 to 63,000, while June figures were …

Executive Summary Inflation expectations have fallen sharply following last week’s benign CPI and PPI prints, yet the market continues to price a meaningful probability of an interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve — a disconnect that appears mispriced. On balance, the Fed will likely look through the near-term energy spike and hold rates steady …

Executive Summary The Treasury Department’s decision to double long-end bond buybacks produced the desired initial market response, but investors should not confuse a successful squeeze on crowded positions with a durable change in the interest rate outlook. The action can reduce the amount of duration the private market must absorb at the margin. In that …