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Investors and investor representatives are often uncomfortable with managed futures because they believe that it is a "zero sum game." This belief endures in spite of managed futures' consistent long-term returns with lower historical volatility than asset-backed securities such as stocks. This white paper looks at the benefits of futures trading as an investment strategy.

The U.S. Department of Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) announced the fourth in a series of deadline extensions for certain required filings in relation to foreign assets. FinCEN Notice 2012-2 extends the filing date for some filers of Form TD F 90-22.1, “Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR),” from June 30, 2013, to June 30, 2014. This article reviews FBAR reporting requirements, who is exempt from filing an FBAR, and who is affected by the extended deadline.

While several key provisions of the ACA take effect in 2013, the broader market impact is likely muted in the near term. Markets are forward-looking, and stocks have had ample time to digest the legislation since it was passed in 2010. Equities showed little movement when the Supreme Court upheld its constitutionality in June, and though the recent election inspired much chatter, it was likely never a game-changer.

A business development company or BDC is a type of investment enterprise that typically lends debt capital to and/or invests in the equity securities of small to mid-size private businesses. This White Paper provides an in-depth introduction to BDCs, including their history, common practices, and risks.

In the first quarter issue of Global Foresight, Rockefeller presents an in-depth review of the risks and opportunities facing global investors in 2013. David Harris, Chief Investment Officer, discusses how the slow mend in the global economy, low interest rates, and other factors should keep equities as a logical core of most portfolios. Jimmy Chang, Senior Portfolio Manager, explores investor unease with the current global economic environment, but notes that staying anticipatory and opportunistic will be important for long-term investors.

While private equity serves as a compelling addition to a well-structured portfolio, it presents investors with unique challenges in the areas of cash flow management, diversification and liquidity. Implementing private equity secondary funds can help offset some of these challenges while presenting investors with favorable return characteristics.

Sudden wealth is not something that happens only to the young founders of a social network. It can happen to elderly couples who have spent their lives building a business. It can happen to a chief executive receiving multi-million dollar dividends or vested options, a middle class young man newly married into a family of wealth, a newly divorced woman, a 25-year-old whose trust payment has suddenly kicked in, and the middle-aged inheritor who now has more money than she ever dreamed about.

Under certain conditions, illiquid wealth can quickly evaporate, or worse – assets can suddenly start to behave like liabilities. If you are successful, then you are wealthy – on paper. Illiquid assets carry a high potential for risk on the balance sheet. But individuals who hold illiquid assets tend to have many wealth planning opportunities too. In this white paper, Ballentine Partners CEO and Chairman Roy Ballentine takes a closer look at this wealth management challenge.

Master Limited Partnerships (MLPs) offer a unique combination of liquidity and cash flow to investors while serving as preferred access vehicles to capital markets. MLPs trade on major exchanges, like most publicly traded corporations. As partnerships, they avoid corporate income tax at the entity level, affording them a distinct cost of capital advantage over corporations. They predominately invest in energy infrastructure and touch many parts of the domestic energy supply chain, serving as a critical component of the general economy.

After many months of heated debate, Congress passed the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (“ATRA”), which President Obama signed into law on January 2, 2013, averting the tax side of the so-called “fiscal cliff”. ATRA permanently extends the middle-class tax cuts, raises income tax rates on the wealthiest and, hopefully, will bolster economic growth.