Mesirow announced today that its Currency Management group has surpassed $100 billion in assets under management (“AUM”) as of December 31, 2019. Currency is one of the biggest risks for institutions investing abroad and, as more money is put to work overseas, this risk continues to grow. As a result, a significant demand for Mesirow’s currency risk management services has led to a 50% increase in AUM since 2017.

Australian, Canadian, and European investors have historically been focused on managing currency risk because their portfolios often have large allocations to international securities. US investors have not typically hedged currency risk, but with increasing allocations to international equities, fixed income and private investments, Mesirow has observed growing risk management interest from US institutions.

“Whether investors decide to manage currency risk or not, careful evaluation of the investors’ exposure to foreign exchange moves would be worthwhile,” said Joseph Hoffman, CEO of Mesirow Currency Management. “Mesirow can help clients decide if currency hedging would benefit investment portfolios and can also offer guidance on currency risk management program aspects such as which currencies to include and the appropriate exposure.”

Hoffman continued, “We are proud to positively impact our clients’ portfolios with products ranging from risk management to currency for return. As an independent agent providing custom FX solutions to institutions globally for over 25 years, we value long-term partnerships with our clients and are proud of the work our team of specialists has done to create innovative solutions for our clients.”

Mesirow Currency Management manages over $100 billion in currency assets for institutional clients in North America, UK, Europe and Australia*. To learn more, please visit mesirow.com and follow us on LinkedIn.

About Mesirow 

Mesirow is an independent, employee-owned financial services firm founded in 1937. Headquartered in Chicago, with offices in 21 cities, we serve clients through a personal, custom approach to reaching financial goals and acting as a force for social good. With capabilities spanning Global Investment Management, Capital Markets & Investment Banking, and Advisory Services, we invest in what matters: our clients, our communities and our workplace culture. For more, visit mesirow.com.

Mesirow has been recently named "Best Place to Work in Chicago" by Crain's Chicago Business and the Chicago Tribune.

*Mesirow Financial Currency Management AUM reflects assets under management for both currency risk management products (passive and active management) and alpha and macro products. Risk management product AUM reflects the total foreign currency portfolio exposure of passive and active clients’ underlying portfolios allocated to the Currency Division of Mesirow Financial. Alpha and macro product AUM reflect the client’s total investment amount in the alpha and macro strategies of the Currency Division of Mesirow Financial, which is calculated based on an annualized 2% volatility target.