We asked Arshad Azim, the Managing Principal at Crescentem (an alternative investment management firm specializing in institutional investing) about his strategies for capital preservation and growth.
At the beginning of his career, Azim managed billions of dollars in institutional assets. Working for a prominent investment consulting firm that had roughly $450 billion in assets gave him many of the skills required to make Crescentem a leader in capital preservation and growth in the realm of institutional investing.
Arshad Azim says that as Managing Principal at Crescentem, it’s his responsibility to oversee that everyone is meeting their KPI when it comes to trust and capital preservation, and they both go hand-in-hand.
“Our approach uses both qualitative and quantitative factors which are considered in tandem with knowledge gleaned from our keen market understanding and over two decades of relationships on both sides of the table.”
Arshad Azim maintains that the investment selection process at Crescentem employs a disciplined and consistent process to select investment managers most suited to capitalize on identified long-term and short-term market opportunities.
The goal, he says, is to inculcate the right alternative investment managers in institutional investment programs to generate superior risk-adjusted returns.
Arshad Azim says Crescentem’s focus revolves around risk management as a key facet. It’s all about capital preservation and growth by ensuring that investment managers make the right choices, keeping their clients at the forefront of investment decisions.
“Risk integration methods help build stronger portfolio foundations,” says Arshad Azim.
“Portfolio construction must be aimed at outperforming under a range of future scenarios,” he continues.
After years in the world of high finance and overseeing portfolios worth billions, Azim maintains that when constructing a portfolio, the goal is to design it in a way where it is future-proof, predicting all possible scenarios and performing against the odds.
“Portfolios should be resilient and adaptable against all future market conditions.”
A key skill Arshad Azim learned from his experience in investment consulting is not depending on unidirectional forecasts, which refer to predictions that assume a single direction or outcome in investment returns.
When it comes to overseeing a portfolio, it’s best not to rely on one-dimensional forecasts to drive investment returns. In fact, sometimes it’s not enough to consider multiple scenarios. Crescentem makes it a priority to envision every scenario, and align solid investing strategies with the core values of institutions across the globe.
“Adequate resourcing of compliance, accounting and legal departments is essential as is an emphasis on a system of checks and balances,” says Azim.
He says that when working with an alternative investment company, it’s imperative to understand the ownership structure and pecking order. It’s also important to know the alignment of investor goals with their positions and influence in the market.
Part of being an investment consultant is knowing that sometimes institutional priorities change institutions switch up or divest from certain investments all the time, and at Crescentem, Arshad Azim and his team of adaptable investment managers won’t shy away from an opportunity to explore tactical innovative solutions in the investment landscape to better assist their clients to arrive at opportune decisions
