Results & Key Findings from the 2021 Allocator Survey

After an indiscriminately volatile year in the markets, SumZero’s Cap Intro team conducted our annual poll of the allocator community. Similar to previous surveys, we asked a handful of questions ranging from asset class & geographic appetite to qualitative GP selection criteria to book recommendations. However this year more than ever, our members’ responses provide cues for the broader institutional investor community and how these firms are adapting their allocation models to reflect the changing tides, exogenous disruptions, and market uncertainty we have become primed to expect over the last twelve months.


For the second iteration of the SumZero Allocator Survey, we received responses from a diverse group of family/multi-family offices, foundations, consultants, endowments, pensions, and fund of funds, representing over $275B in assets and more than 200 individual investment professionals. The group - primarily based in North America, Middle East, Europe, and Australia - includes firms that engage most consistently with SumZero and have a history of placing capital with SumZero managers. Many firms provided confirmation of the latter within this survey, bringing our reported total of attributable allocations to $500M since 2016. As of the publication of this survey, all respondents are active members of our Cap Intro community, using the site to discover new funds, and consume research. 


This kind of nuanced allocator intelligence enables the SumZero team to offer sound advice to our managers, facilitate meaningful introductions, and consider enhancements to the SumZero experience. It is our hope that SumZero members use these results as a reference point when structuring their investment products, performance reporting, and recurring investor communications. In designing timely and germane surveys like this, we aim to increase transparency within the fundraising process and improve our client relationships by better understanding the goals and challenges facing LPs and GPs alike.


Please download the full report below and reach out to capintro@sumzero.com if interested in joining our Cap Intro community as a fund or allocator member.

Download the Report Here