Investment Mandates: Which Will Keep You Up-to-Date? FINSearches, Mandate Wire, and Dakota Searches

Picture this: you learn about a new institutional investment search within your asset class. It looks like a great fit, but it’s already been posted for long enough that you’re scrambling to get everything you need together in time to submit. 

If this sounds like something you’ve experienced before, you already know how frustrating it can be. 

That’s why it’s critical to stay as updated as possible on new investment mandates as they happen. 

In this article, we're going to outline three of the resources that can be used to ensure you never miss another investment mandate. We're including our own product, Dakota Searches as an option, too, but don't worry, we're not here to tell you that our solution is the only one. 

By the end of the article, you'll have a better understanding of three major platforms in the investment mandate space, so that you can make the most informed choice for your team and firm.

FINSearches

Product Overview

With FINsearches, you’ll access comprehensive institutional investment coverage. 

Subscribers receive updates on mandates across North America that allows you to focus on key clients and potential relationships plans, insights on consultants, and access to documents from public pensions, foundations, endowments, and related documents from consultants and managers. 

In their own words, FINsearches is “a powerful and complete sales and marketing tool available for the institutional asset management industry for defined benefit plans, nonprofits, and consultants.” 

How it works

With a FINsearches subscription, you’ll receive access to information that will allow you to thoroughly research your prospects. You and your team will be able to see in real time investment activity found by their research and editorial team. There’s an option for advanced filtering to narrow down your query. Finally, with the Map feature, you’ll be able to identify meeting opportunities and leads in specific areas. 

Price

While there was no pricing information available, there is a free trial option available to see if this is the right fit for you. 

MandateWire

Product Overview

With a MandateWire subscription you’ll have access to reliable and high-value investment knowledge on RFPs, planned allocations, and institutional asset flows in Europe, North America, APAC and India, The Middle East, and Africa.

Mandate Wire's main area of focus is pension fund information, but there’s also information on charities, insurance companies, endowment funds, and more. According to MandateWire, there’s more than 18 years of data and extensive investor and consultant directories. You’ll find new businesses and get time back to your days from the expensive research on their platform. 

How it works

There are five parts of MandateWire: intelligence, market data, analysis, directories, and documents.

The intelligence provides you insights to the latest reports or information you need with the advanced search option. The market data section gives the latest mandate wins and terminations, which you can filter by a range of different criteria such as consultants involved and asset class.

You can also use MandateWire to access quarterly and annual Deal Flow reports that cover global institutional asset management activity. Their directories permit you and your team to build lists of targets based on their asset exposure, managers, consultants, and more. Finally, MandateWire’s documents and third party materials can be bookmarked to easily find information. 

Price

While there was no pricing information available, there is a demo available for MandateWire, which will help determine if it’s the right fit for you.

Dakota Searches

Product Overview

Dakota Searches includes over 150 investment mandates, and shares them on a consistent weekly basis. With our subscription, you and your team will eliminate time spent searching for mandates, receive real-time search updates, and increase your sales team's efficiency.

By simply putting in your email, you’ll receive real time updates on institutional investments for your preferred asset class. 

How it works

By signing up for our free subscription, you’ll receive real-time search alerts for your preferred asset class. Our Public Pension Briefs offer insights and takeaways from public pension fund monthly meetings. We have a dedicated team to parse out key information from the meeting minutes to deliver these to your inbox.  

Price

Dakota Searches is a free email subscription service.

Which is right for you?

While this ultimately comes down to your firm's needs, there are a few things to take into consideration as you start to decide which is the right fit for you. 

If you... 

• Want access to international searches, MandateWire would be a good fit, since they offer search information globally. 
• Want information on searches as well as additional documentation, FINsearches might be the best solution for your team. 
• Are looking for free, real-time updates delivered right to your inbox, Dakota Searches would be the best fit.