How are insurance companies unlocking yield premiums that public markets can't deliver?
In episode 2 of the Private Markets Series, Angelo Calvello, host of Institutional Edge, interviews Leo Svoboda, Head of Enterprise Portfolio Management at Nationwide Investments, about insurance companies' growing dominance in private credit markets. Leo explains how insurers are driving growth in the $2+ trillion private credit space through yield premiums, regulatory capital efficiency, and liability matching strategies. The discussion covers the expanding opportunity set from direct lending to private asset-backed finance, access methods including rated feeders and SMAs, key risks like illiquidity, and the evolution from niche alternative to mainstream financing tool for institutional investors.
Leo Svoboda is the Head of Enterprise Portfolio Management at Nationwide Investments, where he leads the team responsible for asset allocation decisions and top-down investment strategy. Previously serving as Head of Liquid Alternatives focused on hedge funds, emerging market credit, and equities, Leo joined Nationwide in August 2017 from Penso Advisors, a global macro hedge fund. Prior to Penso, he led the Liquid Alternatives effort at UPS Group Trust. Leo is a CFA Charterholder and certified FRM, holding a BSBA from Bowling Green State University and an MBA in Finance with honors from the Wharton School.
In This Episode:
(00:00) Leo Svoboda introduction and background at Nationwide Investments
(03:13) What's driving insurance companies' interest in private debt investments
(06:29) Regulatory benefits and rated feeder technology for insurers
(09:15) How insurance companies access private credit opportunities and structures
(14:28) Portfolio diversification benefits and collateral risk management strategies
(18:35) Global expansion of private credit markets beyond US
(20:13) Benchmarking challenges and goals-focused approach in private markets
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Dr. Angelo Calvello is a serial innovator and co-founder of multiple investment firms, including Rosetta Analytics and Blue Diamond Asset Management. He leverages his extensive professional network and reputation for authentic thought leadership to curate conversations with genuinely innovative allocators.
As the "Dissident" columnist for Institutional Investor and former "Doctor Is In" columnist for Chief Investment Officer (winner of the 2016 Jesse H. Neal Award), Calvello has become a leading voice challenging conventional investment wisdom.
Beyond his professional pursuits, Calvello serves as Chairman of the Maryland State Retirement and Pension System's Climate Advisory Panel, Chairman of the Board of Outreach with Lacrosse and Schools (OWLS Lacrosse), a nonprofit organization creating opportunities for at-risk youths in Chicago, and trustee for a Chicago-area police pension fund. His career-long focus on leveraging innovation to deliver superior clien...
Chapters
- (00:00:00) - The Institutional Edge: Going Global
- (00:00:57) - Private Market: Beyond Insurance to Wealth Management
- (00:02:14) - What's Driving Insurance Companies' Interest in Private Credit?
- (00:06:16) - Life and Capital Enhancement, Insurance Companies
- (00:07:56) - How Do Insurance Companies Access Investment-Grade Lending?
- (00:09:53) - Private Credit Opportunities for Insurance Companies
- (00:13:39) - Private Debt: Growth and Marginal Returns
- (00:15:40) - Private Equity and the Credit Market
- (00:16:40) - Private Credit: Risk of Credit Situations
- (00:18:31) - Private Asset Finance: Global Opportunities
- (00:19:59) - Private Asset Benchmarking
- (00:22:14) - Private Credit: Do Insurance Companies Have a Competitive Advantage?
- (00:25:03) - The Worst Investment Pitch You've Heard
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