A skillful combination is the way to achieve real value

pensions

On their own alternative investments can be high risk but put together with conventional investments they can offer an improvement on traditional structures

It is not often that you will see the word pioneer written alongside institutional investing but there is a growing trend that warrants this accolade and the imagery it conjures up to the reader. The trend is a move towards the exotic as professional investors increasingly turn to alternative investments in an attempt to diversify their portfolios and reduce risk. One of the early pioneers of this - David Swensen, chief investment officer of Yale University - has spent the past 20 years turning institutional investing on its head by steering the $18 billion Yale Endowment away from the tra...