Capital Series: Mark Berryman and Nick Flores, Caprock
Nov 1, 2023
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Mark Berryman and Nick Flores from Caprock talk about their multifamily office and their emphasis on impact investments. They discuss their approach to impact, due diligence, and monitoring, as well as client demand for niche impact opportunities. The episode also explores return profiles, criteria for manager selection, and the importance of impact measurement in investment decisions.
Caprock allocates over $2 billion out of their $8.5 billion in assets under management to impact investments, highlighting their strong commitment to impact investing.
Caprock acknowledges the challenges and risks associated with the fast-paced growth of climate tech fundraising but remains optimistic about the opportunities it presents and aims to balance risk and return by supporting innovative impact funds.
Caprock recognizes the importance of deep tech in pushing forward climate solutions and aims to find a balance between risk tolerance and proven opportunities while prioritizing authenticity and impact reporting.
Deep dives
Caprock: A Multi-Family Office with a Focus on Impact Investments
Caprock is a multi-family office founded in 2005 that works with over 300 families and foundations. They provide customized financial solutions and have a strong commitment to impact investing. With their expertise in the private markets and impact investing, Caprock has allocated over $2 billion to impact investments out of their $8.5 billion in assets under management. They prioritize customization and client advisory to construct portfolios that align with their clients' investment policies and impact objectives. The firm places an emphasis on impact reporting and requires its managers to report impact on an annual basis. Caprock's LP base has been evolving to include more investors who recognize the financial opportunities in impact investing. They are excited about the growing momentum and sophistication in the climate tech space and are open to exploring early-stage venture debt and project finance opportunities.
The Barriers and Opportunities in Climate Tech Fundraising
Caprock acknowledges the challenges and risks associated with the fast-paced growth of climate tech fundraising. The hype and FOMO can sometimes result in overvaluations and potential mispricing. They are concerned about the possibility of overextended capital in certain deals and the potential need for down rounds and complicated term sheets. However, they are also optimistic about the momentum in the climate tech space and the opportunities it presents. Caprock aims to balance risk and return by supporting innovative, finance-first impact funds and focusing on impact reporting and measurement. They anticipate a positive climate tech investment landscape in the coming years, with a mix of discipline, capital, and attractive investment opportunities.
The Growing Appetite for Deep Tech in Climate Investing
Caprock is witnessing a growing appetite among its clients to invest in deep tech within climate investing. While the majority of their impact investments have been focused on seed to late-stage climate venture capital funds, they recognize the importance of deep tech in pushing forward climate solutions. The firm aims to find a balance between risk tolerance and proven opportunities. They see deep tech investments as a critical part of the climate tech capital stack, as they offer disruptive solutions that drive significant impact. Caprock strives to continually evaluate and support emerging opportunities in this space while prioritizing authenticity and impact reporting.
The Importance of Impact Reporting and Measurement
Caprock places a strong emphasis on impact reporting and measurement. They require their managers to report impact on an annual basis, ensuring accountability and transparency. The firm believes that impact investing will eventually be viewed as standard investing, and impact measurement will play a crucial role in decision-making. They are actively involved in field-building efforts and participate in organizations focused on impact reporting standardization. Caprock has seen the value of reporting and measurement in attracting clients and other capital to impact investment opportunities.
Building Diversified Impact Portfolios with Customization
Caprock takes a client-centric approach and builds customized portfolios that align with each client's unique impact objectives. They offer diversified impact opportunities across various asset classes, such as cash, fixed income, public equities, alternatives, real assets, private debt, private equity, and venture capital. Recognizing that impact measurement is still evolving, Caprock manages client expectations and ensures they understand the trade-offs associated with impact investments. The firm aims to balance impact and financial return, leveraging their expertise in the private markets to provide tailored investment solutions that meet the needs of their clients.
This episode is part of our Capital Series hosted by Jason Jacobs. This series explores a diverse range of capital sources and the individuals who drive them. From family offices and institutional LPs to private equity, government funding, and more, we take a deep dive into the world of capital and its critical role in driving innovation and progress.
On today’s MCJ Capital Series, we have two guests: Mark Berryman, Managing Director of Impact Investments, and Nick Flores, Managing Director of Impact Investing and Client Advisor for Caprock.
Caprock is a multifamily office that provides customized, comprehensive and strategic financial solutions for a select number of families and foundations. They advise over $8 billion in assets of which over $2 billion has been allocated to impact investments. Caprock is a founding B corporation, which certifies that they meet the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency and legal accountability to balance profit and purpose.
In this episode, we cover:
[2:05] An overview of Caprock
[3:07] The roles and collaboration between the client advisory and investment research teams at Caprock
[5:38] Caprock's approach to impact, due diligence and monitoring
[8:48] The firm's emphasis on privates
[18:21] Client demand for deeper and more niche impact investment opportunities
[25:19] How Caprock thinks about return profiles
[30:51] Criteria for manager and fund selection
[34:13] Tracking specialists vs generalists
[38:23] Nick and Mark's concerns and what excites them in the climate space
[41:35] Caprock's interest in deep tech
[45:00] Thoughts on first of its kind (FOAK)
[47:31] Evolution of LP base and barriers holding it back
[51:31] Continuous learning and knowledge sharing as a key aspect of Caprock's approach to impact investing
Correction: In this episode, Jason mistakenly refers to Caprock as having over $8 billion in assets under management. Caprock advises over $8 billion in assets.
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Episode recorded on Oct 12, 2023 (Published on Nov 1, 2023)
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