Direct Private Investing

Family offices are increasingly embracing direct investing, but many lack the private-equity talent, processes and discipline needed to execute effectively, according to Raffi Amit, the Marie and Joseph Melone Professor and a Professor of Management at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Family offices and their service providers have been busy. This week: investments in ports, lenders, insurance and a first half deal activity review.

Kreamer Rooke is an eighth-generation family member of the Dickinson Group, a Charleston, W.Va.-based family office where he also serves on the investment committee. He is also the founder and a managing partner at Station Partners, a private investment firm. He talks about the tactics the Dickinson Group is using to promote engagement among its growing number of family members after so many generations.

Jacob Miller is co-founder and chief solutions officer for Opto Investments, a private market investments platform. He talks about how technology can help family offices and other investors make better investment decisions.

Family offices are increasingly turning to alternative investments like private equity, real estate, and crypto for their potential higher returns and long-term stability, but managing these assets is often burdensome due to scattered documents, complex reporting, and administrative inefficiencies.