An alternative investment is an investment product other than traditional investments such as stocks, bonds or cash. Most alternative investment assets are held by institutional investors or accredited, high-net-worth individuals because of their complex nature, limited regulations and relative lack of liquidity.
Some of the more common alternative investments are wine, art and antiques, indeed any business of value, might also be considered as an alternative investment.
One common theme to alternative investments is that they are often hoped to have modest correlations with traditional investments and so to increase the diversification of investor’s portfolios. Alternative investments are favored mainly because their returns have a low correlation with those of standard asset classes.
Because of this, many large institutional funds such as pensions and private endowments have begun to allocate a small portion (typically less than 10%) of their portfolios to alternative investments such as hedge funds.
Those looking to mitigate their carbon footprint increasingly use Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) and carbon offsets interchangeably. Unfortunately, this means some core differences between the two distinct commodities are being overlooked. The Difference Between Carbon Offsets and RECs To understand the difference between offsets and RECs, it’s helpful to first take a step back and…
What are RECs? Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs), also known as “green tags,” “green certificates,” and “renewable energy credits,” are tradable instruments which can be used to meet voluntary renewable energy targets as well as to meet compliance requirements for renewable energy policies. A REC is a certificate that indicates the generation of one megawatt hour (MWh) of…
In the current economical and investment climate, sustainable forestry projects can offer a low-risk investment opportunity with additional environmental benefits. Timber is not only a stable and predictable addition to a portfolio, but has outperformed the S&P index since 1910. It is the only asset class in existence that has gone up in three out of the four major market collapses of the…
Major changes to Government legislation limiting emissions from crematoria have placed renewed financial pressures on local authorities striving to keep expenditure under control. In order to meet these new demands and fulfill their commitments to residents many UK councils are now turning to private partnerships to help carry the financial burden. A recent abatement ruling requires that all…
According to the Live-Ex Fine Wine 100 index, the benchmark indicator for fine wine investment, prices have been recovering since the beginning of the year and have risen 1.6 percent in February alone. This comes on the back of a tough 2011 for the industry as prices on the index plunged 15 percent over the year. “We’ve just come off the back of a correction, the third in 25 years, making…
Investors of the Wine Investment Fund (TWIF) 2006(3) Tranche are raising their glasses. They have received returns equivalent to over 10% p.a. over the last 5 years. This is a significant better return than what they would have achieved on the FTSE over the same period. Equivalent to over 10% p.a. over the last 5 years. The Wine Investment Fund (TWIF) announced its latest pay-out as its 2006(3)…
Carbon credits have been heavily promoted over the last 5 years and have received hundreds of millions in investment from investors worldwide. With 'boiler room' style companies flooding into this industry investors need to be sure that they are investing in the right companies to take advantage of the excellent returns that are possible if managed correctly. Jonathan Phelan, head of the…
Cemetery Investments
Returns for this investment have been modestly predicted at 33% but this could rise as high as 50% as the shortage of burial space is already at a critical point in many areas and prices are set to continue to rise as local authorities struggle to keep up with the demand.
Entry level from £2,950
