Alternative investment firms Apollo Global Management Inc., Ares Management Corp. and Oaktree Capital Management have joined forces to launch a new initiative designed to diversify the alternative investment industry.
The initiative, "AltFinance: Investing in Black Futures," will be launched in partnership with historically Black colleges Clark Atlanta University, Howard University, Morehouse College and Spelman College and is aimed at attracting, training and providing the schools' students with career opportunities.
A new non-profit organization, ALT Finance Corp., established by the three alternative investment firms, will administer the initiative.
The idea was sparked by Antony Ressler, Ares' co-founder and executive chairman, who called the leadership at Apollo and Oaktree and pitched the idea of teaming up to work with historically Black colleges, said Jerilyn Castillo McAniff, managing director at Oaktree and head of diversity and inclusion."We were able to mobilize very quickly as it was perfectly aligned with our goals and made sense," she said.
The initiative consists of a mentored fellowship program, a customized virtual institute and a scholarship program. Students awarded with fellowships will learn the ins and outs of finance and alternatives directly from a dedicated mentor from one of the three firms. The fellowship program will be run in partnership with the non-profit organization Management Leadership for Tomorrow.
John Rice, founder and CEO of MLT, said his organization's role will be to share the expertise gained in its mission to ensure that Blacks, Hispanics/Latinos and Native Americans are able to thrive at the highest levels of corporate America.
The virtual institute will be created by the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and offer educational materials and tools for students at the four colleges.
The 10-year, $90 million initiative is expected to launch in the first half of 2022 and expand beyond the initial four colleges.
