The IPA Vision 2024 Conference in Florida was a great time to catch up with lots of clients and friends in the alternative investment wealth management business. The nearly 500-person group assembled was the perfect balance of investment firms, wealth managers and advisors, and vendors (like me). Beyond a number of friends and former clients on the Board of the Institute for Portfolio Alternatives, I met dozens of new acquaintances and caught up with many friends with whom I had lost touch. Most enjoyable was sharing stories about the history of the IPA with Anya Coverman, President & CEO of the IPA; Mark Goldberg, former Chair of the IPA, who made a fabulous presentation of the new IPA 2024 AltsLeaders Survey; and Chip Roame of Tiburon, who made the Keynote presentation Wednesday with some incredible insights on trends in the Wealth & Investment Management business. We went down memory lane on the IPA when my current client, William Turchyn at Mariner Investment Group, reminded me that he had been one of Goldberg’s predecessors as Chair of the Association.
The scare of a hurricane headed to Florida thinned the crowd out a little by Wednesday afternoon, but it made for a really intimate setting at cocktails that day, with only about 100 present. I enjoyed the new friends I made that evening. (The track of the storm actually went 500 miles west of Orlando, and it was partly cloudy on Thursday with a beautiful sunrise and no delays at the airport!). Big shout out to the entire staff at the IPA for choosing a fantastic venue and running a smooth and efficient show. Look forward to 2025!