PNC collaborates with Morningstar on new liquid alts project

PNC Investments has launched a recommended list of liquid alternative mutual funds. The broker-dealer arm of PNC Financial is creating the PNCI Liquid Alternatives Conviction list consists of 18 open-ended mutual funds. The firm’s five-person diligence team collaborated with Morningstar’s manager selection team to build the list.

The two teams also collaborated on an ESG recommendation list last year. That list consisted of 37 ETFs and mutual funds for ESG purposes. The group’s primary conviction lists now comprise nearly 240 mutual funds and 140 ETFs

‘We continually look at the platform, and look at the competitive environment, to see where we might have any gaps or opportunities to expand our product shelf,’ said PNC Investments’ diligence chief Lawrence Wasserman.

Wasserman was promoted in March 2019 to his role. The firm recently added a new analyst earlier this month.

PNC Investments on Allocation

CityWireUSA quoted Wasserman on the company’s commitment to allocation to liquid alts.

“We’ve always had an allocation in some of our advisory models to liquid alternatives, though we didn’t really have much in the way of a selection menu for the brokerage side of the business. Having Morningstar help us build this conviction list is another way that we’ve been executing on filling any gaps and meeting client needs on the platform,” he said.

He also discussed how certain clients many benefit from liquid alternative investment opinions and product recommendations.

“We want clients to be able to have the appropriate tools in the toolbox to be able to get the diversification they need in their portfolios,” he said “We don’t look at liquid alternatives as a panacea, but in the right cases, for the right clients, they can be a decent diversifier in a portfolio and can lead, in some cases, to enhanced diversification for clients.”