The Seven Best Books on Alternative Investing
Alternative investments are those assets that fall outside of traditional categories such as stocks and bonds. For many seasoned investors, alternative investments — real estate, venture capital, private equity, hedge funds, cryptocurrencies, and others — offer a way to bring additional diversification to a portfolio because the investments generally have low correlations to more conventional assets.
But alternative investments aren’t for everyone. Most are fairly complex, illiquid, and come with higher-than-average risk levels (and lower-than-average regulatory oversight). As a result, it’s usually institutional or accredited investors who seek them out. But even the most sophisticated of investors can still benefit from fresh insights into these assets, which is why we asked members of the Avestix leadership team to share the books they recommend to anyone wanting to explore alternative investments. Below are some titles members of our leadership team recommend to investors looking to broaden their knowledge of alternative investing as well as the technology trends that are reshaping the alternative investing landscape.
Avestix CEO and founder, Susan Lindeque, recommends:
The Holy Grail of Investing by Tony Robbins
Robbins might be best known as a motivational speaker, but he’s also authored numerous bestsellers, including his “Financial Freedom” trilogy. Holy Grail is the third title in the trilogy and it is based on interviews that he (and co-author, Christopher Zook) conducted with top investors to get their thoughts on private equity markets, real estate, venture capital, and more.
The Principles for Dealing With the Changing World Order by Ray Dalio
Dalio (an author who appears more than once in this list), is the founder of Bridgewater Associates, a leading hedge fund firm. In The Principles for Dealing With the Changing World Order, he looks at the rise and fall of numerous world empires over the last five centuries, calling out patterns — and some unfortunate truths — that we’re still witnessing today in the current geopolitical landscape.
Because Ash Aly is Avestix’s Chief Technology Officer, it’s not surprising his suggestions focus more on opportunities in emerging technologies. Ash suggests:
The Venture Mindset by Ilya Strebulaev and Alex Dang
Ash recommends this book for “anyone seeking a future-looking investing paradigm.” He is a fan because Strebulaev and Dang dive deep into the world of venture capitalists, drawing on a comprehensive database of unicorns, while breaking down the numbers to demonstrate that there is a methodology to finding and selecting unicorns that offer true promise for the future. The authors also look into the specifics of VC investing, comparing and contrasting it to the world of traditional investments. In their view of the VC world, winners are those leaders who best leverage disruptive technologies.
The Singularity is Nearer by Ray Kurzwiel
Futurist Ray Kurzweil’s The Singularity Is Nearer is a sequel of sorts to his 2005 bestseller, The Singularity Is Near. In the newer book, Kurzwiel shares his estimate for humanity's progress across six stages of acceleration towards a singularity. Along the way, he focuses on the evolution of AI and its downstream exponential acceleration. He also looks at the implications of this in other fields including healthcare, robotics, and nanotechnologies. He paints an optimistic picture of the future, but he doesn’t shy away from how these technologies can be misused.
The Future is Faster Than You Think by Peter H. Diamandis (PHD Ventures) and Steven Kotler
What happens as AI, robotics, virtual reality, digital biology, and sensors crash into 3D printing, blockchain, and global gigabit networks? That’s only one question Diamandis and Kotler set out to answer in The Future is Faster Than You Think. They also investigate how seemingly unending technological innovations are influencing both our daily lives and society as a whole. Not only will investors find the technology projections fascinating, but they may also see previously unseen opportunities on the horizon.
Finally, R. Adam Smith, Special Advisor for Avestix, suggests the following titles:
Dalio makes our list a second-time thanks to this groundbreaking book. Principles offers both personal and professional observations where Dalio distills his own experiences into a comprehensive set of principles for achieving success. He also offers a framework for decision-making and problem-solving and uses algorithms and data to support the insights that were behind the launch of one of the world's most successful hedge funds.
Market Wizards by Jack Schwager
Market Wizards pulls together a variety of in-depth interviews with some of the financial services industry’s most successful traders and investors who share the inner workings of their strategies, philosophies, and trading practices. What sets the book apart, says Adam, is the quality of perspectives they offer to readers. Schwager’s interviewing style is also sharp and the quality of his writing makes the subject matter come alive. (Worth noting: Avestix CEO, Susan Lindeque, is also a big fan of Market Wizards.)
If you’d like to know more about Avestix’s unique approach to alternative investing, contact us today.
