Live from Nuveen's nPowered Conference: Nuveen's Keith Jones - structuring products for success

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast. Alt Goes Mainstream was live from $1.2T AUM asset manager Nuveen’s nPowered conference, a two-day event bringing together Nuveen thought leaders and industry experts to explore challenges and opportunities in private markets. We interviewed some of Nuveen’s senior leadership on site to hear their views and perspectives on private markets, working with the wealth channel, and product innovation. We sat down with Keith Jones, the Global Head of Alternative Investments Product for Nuveen, and a member of the Extended Leadership Team. He’s responsible for the development and ongoing management of alternative investment products distributed through Nuveen’s institutional, wealth management, and retirement channels globally. Keith and I had a fascinating conversation about product innovation in the wealth channel, how to educate and market products specifically designed for the wealth channel, and why it’s not a “one-size-fits-all” approach. Thanks Keith for coming on the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast to share your wisdom and expertise. We hope you enjoy. Clip #1: It starts with the clients. Clip #2: Turning the battleship. Clip #3: How does brand intersect with the creation and structuring of products? A word from AGM podcast sponsor, Ultimus Fund Solutions This episode of Alt Goes Mainstream is brought to you by Ultimus Fund Solutions, a leading full-service fund administrator for asset managers in private and public markets. As private markets continue to move into the mainstream, the industry requires infrastructure solutions that help funds and investors keep pace. In an increasingly sophisticated financial marketplace, investment managers must navigate a growing array of challenges: elaborate fund structures, specialized strategies, evolving compliance requirements, a growing need for sophisticated reporting, and intensifying demands for transparency. To assist with these challenging opportunities, more and more fund sponsors and asset managers are turning to Ultimus, a leading service provider that blends high tech and high touch in unique and customized fund administration and middle office solutions for a diverse and growing universe of over 450 clients and 1,800 funds, representing $500 billion assets under administration, all handled by a team of over 1,000 professionals. Ultimus offers a wide range of capabilities across registered funds, private funds and public plans, as well as outsourced middle office services. Delivering operational excellence, Ultimus helps firms manage the ever-changing regulatory environment while meeting the needs of their institutional and retail investors. Ultimus provides comprehensive operational support and fund governance services to help managers successfully launch retail alternative products. Visit www.ultimusfundsolutions.com to learn more about Ultimus’ technology enhanced services and solutions or contact Ultimus Executive Vice President of Business Development Gary Harris on email at [email protected]. We thank Ultimus for their support of alts going mainstream. Show Notes 00:00 Message from our Sponsor, Ultimus Fund Solutions 01:18 Podcast Opening Theme 01:55 Welcome to Alt Goes Mainstream 02:19 Interview with Keith Jones: Background and Role 05:11 Product Innovation in Wealth Channel 05:23 Structuring Products for Wealth Channel 06:19 Client-Centric Approach 07:08 Challenges in Structuring Products 07:50 Importance of Brand 11:03 Nuveen's Real Estate Focus 12:04 Feedback from Distribution Teams 13:00 Product Governance 13:48 Wealth vs. Institutional Channels 17:03 Institutional Learnings from Wealth Channel 18:46 Operational Considerations and Education 19:30 FinTech Solutions 19:51 Subscription Process 21:04 Reporting Challenges 21:46 Unlocking Investor Allocation 22:55 Retirement Channel Opportunities 23:14 Education and Alternatives 24:26 Model Portfolios 25:22 Tokenization and Liquidity 26:18 Client-Centric Product Structuring 27:28 Communication and Alignment 30:45 Evergreen Structures 31:46 PM Skillset Evolution 33:14 Future of Product Innovation 34:53 Fee Compression in Alternatives 38:15 Diversification Benefits 40:17 Industry Collaboration 41:47 Conclusion and Thanks Join over 9,000 thought leaders from top private markets firms like Blackstone, Apollo, Ares, KKR, Carlyle, Blue Owl, CVC, TPG, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, BlackRock, Fidelity, iCapital, Franklin Templeton, Nuveen and more. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit altgoesmainstream.substack.com