Standish buys boutique HF admin Alpha Alternatives
Fund administrator Standish Management has completed its purchase of Alpha Alternatives Fund Services in a deal that creates a complete one-stop shop for alternative investment fund services.
Alpha’s existing clients and entrepreneurial culture are a strong fit with Standish, which provides fund administration to private equity, venture capital and real estate managers. Alpha, which was founded in 2013, is also well-known for its technology offering the PFS-PAXUS, which also feeds into its real-time web portal that allows fund managers, investors and others to access their information online.
“Since opening our doors, our objective has been to provide clients with solutions to help facilitate their growth,” said Standish Founder and CEO Robert Raynard. “This means we need to have the systems and expertise to support various fund structures and strategies. Alpha has built an impressive track record of providing high quality, high touch client service to hedge funds. We look forward to working alongside them to contribute to the continued success of our combined teams.”
Founded in 2007, Standish has grown to over $250 billion in assets under administration, administering over 2,500 entities and reporting to more than 30,000 LPs. The transaction will bring new opportunities and additional services to each firm’s clients and provide a service solution for innovative, hybrid fund structures, officials said.
The Alpha acquisition adds 40 client relationships and over $3 billion in client assets. The Carlsbad, Calif-based firm will leverage Standish’s infrastructure to serve clients locally by placing people in strategic offices across the country.
As the deal closed in November, former Rothstein Kass and KPMG Partner Todd Goldman was tapped to serve as Alpha’s president, taking over the firm’s management and growth strategy from Alpha’s founders Mitch Little and Arne Rovell.
Goldman commented that he looks forward to delivering “dynamic fund solutions for a wide variety of fund structures and strategies.”
“I am thrilled to be joining the Standish organization to lead the integration of Alpha,” said Goldman. “Many of my former colleagues and friends have joined Standish over the years, so I already feel like part of the band. My passion for helping fund managers grow their businesses by developing and launching new products aligns perfectly with my new role.”
Jasinda Bryden, who is also a co-founder of Alpha, will stay on board serving as director of fund administration. Anne Dixon, a senior manager at Standish and a Rothstein Kass alum, will also be joining Alpha. Combined the team has decades of fund administration, accounting, consulting and executive leadership experience and a track record of growing and leading companies and teams.
