Keep pulling the thread on Brendan O’Connor.
Regal Partners grew from a A$1 billion long-short equity specialist in 2016 to a publicly listed, multi-strategy alternatives firm with A$21 billion in AUM today.
Australia has accumulated A$4 trillion in superannuation savings, making its pension system the fourth largest in the world despite having only the 50th largest population.
Brendan O'Connor believes Australia is well-positioned to benefit from the increased energy demand driven by the global AI thematic due to its abundance of critical minerals.
Regal Partners claims to be the largest pre-IPO investor for companies in Australia.
Regal Partners is the largest owner of water rights in Australia outside of the Commonwealth government.
Regal Partners went public on the ASX in June 2022 through a reverse acquisition of another listed hedge fund.
The resources sector represents about 25% of the Australian equity market today, down from as much as 65% in the late 1960s and 1970s.
Brendan O'Connor believes the current global environment of high inflation, breakdown of free trade, and geopolitical instability is very bullish for the resources sector.
Australia's largest companies, such as the big four banks and Telstra, are projected to have slow EPS growth of only 2% to 3% in the coming years, excluding BHP and Rio Tinto.
Australia's mandatory superannuation guarantee levy has increased from 3% of salaries in 1992 to 12% currently.
Australian pension funds exhibit a multi-decade trend of internalizing asset management capabilities rather than using third-party providers.
The Australian pension system has been slower to adopt alternative investment strategies compared to other markets.