Insights

Opinion pieces from the team, and uses cases covering private markets, infrastructure investment, climate change, social risk, and more.

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A new era of data & analytics for infrastructure investors

Jun. 24, 2021
This post is the editorial of the June 2021 EDHECinfra Newsletter (Volume 5 issue 1)  Infrastructure investment is evolving from a niche alternative asset class into a fully-fledged investment sector and value chain. As this evolution takes place, the need for data and analytics is also growing rapidly for investors, managers, consultants and financial service providers. Access to the best
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Three questions to Thierry Déau on volatility and infrastructure investment

Jun. 20, 2021
With the support of LTIIA, EDHECinfra recently published a new paper exploring the nature and drivers of the issue of Volatility of Unlisted Infrastructure Equity Investments. We spoke with Thierry Déau, Chairman of LTIIA and CEO of Meridiam, about the paper’s findings and its industry relevance. 1. What was the main reason to sponsor the research paper “The volatility of
Featured image for “The Economist: Infrastructure is a key driver of post-Covid recovery plans…”

The Economist: Infrastructure is a key driver of post-Covid recovery plans…

Apr. 27, 2021
…but can investors understand the risks?  With new data that accurately describes the yield and risks of infrastructure investments, institutional investors can embrace infrastructure investment more easily. This article was originally published by The Economist in March 2021. Governments around the world are eyeing infrastructure as a post-Covid economic panacea. The ability of infrastructure projects to stimulate short-term employment and
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Wall Street Journal: Investors should heed losses in the airport sector

Apr. 27, 2021
This article was originally published in the Wall Street Journal in April 2021. The impact of Covid-19 lockdowns on the airport sector highlights a dilemma about how investors approach the valuation of private, illiquid infrastructure assets. On the one hand, there has been a clear, large shock to the revenues of airports that cannot leave the value of these companies
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FT: Is the return profile of infra funds too good to be true?

Apr. 27, 2021
This article was first published in the Financial Times in April 2021. Unbelievably Smooth If one examines the annual reports of many unlisted infrastructure equity funds a surprising pattern appears: given the level of returns reported, the risk implied by the volatility of the valuations is surprisingly low, as shown in table 1. For that level of volatility, over a
Featured image for “Bloomberg: Hurdles not set in the interest of investors in funds”

Bloomberg: Hurdles not set in the interest of investors in funds

Apr. 27, 2021
This article was originally published by Bloomberg in April 2021. The Bottleneck Fund raising by infrastructure fund managers is at an all-time high but so is the amount of funds raised that has not been invested. The amount of so-called ‘dry powder’ has been multiplied by three in ten years and now stands at more than USD200bn. While infrastructure investment