Investment Consultant
Aiperion LLC
Chicago
Investor Directory
Investment Consultants
This directory lists investment consulting firms that advise institutional investors on asset allocation, manager selection, and portfolio construction, drawn from each firm's own site and, where available, the maintained evidence register. Investment consultants sit between institutional capital and the managers who want it: they advise pensions, endowments, foundations, insurers, and healthcare systems, while the client keeps final decision-making authority, which is what separates consulting from a discretionary outsourced chief investment officer mandate. Most of the figures disclosed by the firms in this directory are assets under advisement rather than assets under management, and the two are not comparable measures; this directory keeps each firm's own stated basis next to its figure and computes its combined management-class total only from figures stated as managed assets, so the headline number here reflects a small disclosed subset, not the scale of advised capital. The combined total counts each firm's primary directory figure only; separately disclosed regulatory-AUM secondary figures shown on individual cards are excluded from it. Investment consultants are consequential gatekeepers in institutional fundraising: a favorable rating from a major consultant can shape which managers reach a client's shortlist at all.
35 Firms Listed$150+ billion Combined AUM (1 of 35 firms reporting)
Data last verified: August 2026
By AUM band
0 <$500M0 $500M-$1B0 $1B-$5B0 $5B-$10B0 $10B-$50B1 >=$50B34 Undisclosed
1 of 35 disclose AUM
By region
28 North America5 Europe0 Middle East1 Asia-Pacific0 Latin America1 Africa
35 firms
Assets under advice
$366 billion supervised
$255 billion (SEC Form ADV Part 2A)
as of 2024-07
Aksia is a specialist alternative investment consulting firm advising institutional investors across private credit, private equity, hedge funds, and real assets, deploying through primary fund commitments, co investments, secondaries, and separately managed accounts. Its governance offering ranges from fully non discretionary advice to fully discretionary implementation, and the firm operates its own integrated research, risk, and portfolio management platform for alternatives coverage.[Firm website]
Aksia maintains an international office network supporting clients globally, and trade press has covered both leadership transitions at the firm and its perspectives on institutional infrastructure investing.[Trade press][Trade press]
Focus
Alternatives-focused investment consulting across hedge funds, private equity, private credit, and real assets
CRD#143422Visit- Investment Consultant
Alan Biller and Associates
Menlo Park - Investment ConsultantFirm-reported
Albourne Partners
London, UKAssets under advice
$800 billion advised
Albourne Partners is an independently owned, non discretionary specialist investment consultant focused exclusively on alternative investments, covering private equity, private credit, real assets, real estate, hedge funds, and risk premia. The firm does not run outsourced chief investment officer mandates, funds of funds, or any investment vehicles of its own, keeping its advice strictly non discretionary.[Firm website]
Founded more than three decades ago by former hedge fund managers and their prime broker, Albourne is led by John Claisse and operates from a network of global offices supporting its alternatives focused client base.[Firm website]
Focus
Specialist alternatives consultant advising on hedge funds, private equity, private credit, and real assets
- Investment ConsultantFirm-reported
AndCo Consulting
Orlando, FLAssets under advice
$180 billion advised
AndCo Consulting is an independent, employee-owned investment consulting firm advising on approximately $180 billion in institutional assets. Headquartered in Orlando, Florida, AndCo serves public pension funds, endowments, foundations, healthcare systems, and corporate retirement plans across the United States. The firm provides non-discretionary investment consulting including asset allocation, manager research and selection, performance monitoring, and alternative investment advisory. AndCo operates as a pure consulting firm without OCIO, proprietary products, or asset management services, maintaining strict independence in its advisor recommendations. The firm has built a particularly strong presence among mid-sized public pension systems and nonprofit institutions in the southeastern United States.
Focus
Independent investment consulting for public funds, endowments, foundations, and healthcare systems
AUM
$150.9 billion regulatory AUM
as of 2025-12
Aon Investments USA Inc., the SEC-registered investment adviser within Aon's investment consulting practice, reports $150.9 billion in regulatory assets under management (SEC Form ADV Part 2A, as of December 31, 2025). The firm was renamed from Aon Hewitt Investment Consulting, Inc. in 2020 and organizes its practice around four client types (defined benefit, defined contribution, public funds, and non-profit and endowment clients), providing asset allocation, manager research and selection, liability-driven investment strategy, and plan de-risking advice. Investment consulting sits alongside the parent firm's broader retirement and risk advisory practice, giving clients access to actuarial and enterprise risk capabilities alongside investment strategy. The team works with plan governance committees on investment policy statements, target-date fund evaluation, and regulatory compliance across multiple jurisdictions.
Focus
Institutional investment consulting for defined benefit, defined contribution, public funds, and non-profit/endowment clients, with integrated risk and retirement advisory
CRD#105596Visit- Investment Consultant
Asset Consulting Group
St. Louis - Investment Consultant
Atlanta Consulting Group Advisors
Atlanta - Investment Consultant
Avalon Group
Singapore - Investment ConsultantFirm-reported
bfinance
London, UKCompleted search volume
$330 billion in completed searches
bfinance is an independent investment consultancy advising institutional asset owners across strategy work such as strategic asset allocation, portfolio design, and ESG advisory; implementation work including manager search and selection and operational due diligence; and ongoing oversight through monitoring, risk reporting, and fee reviews, spanning equities, fixed income, diversifying strategies, and private markets.[Firm website]
The firm does not invest its own capital and does not manage assets on a discretionary basis. Instead it publishes its own recurring research covering manager intelligence and market trends, alongside spotlight interviews with institutional investor clients on topics such as impact investing and quantitative equities.[Firm website]
Focus
Independent investment consultancy specializing in manager selection, asset allocation, and portfolio design
- Investment ConsultantFirm-reported
Callan
San Francisco, CAAssets under advice
$3.0 trillion advised
Callan advises on $3.0 trillion in institutional assets from its San Francisco base, serving corporate and public pensions, endowments, and foundations since 1973. Two things set Callan apart. First, its proprietary database, one of the largest collections of institutional manager performance data in the industry, and the annual Callan Institutional Investor Survey, which has become a standard reference for asset allocation trends. Second, Callan is a pure advisory firm with no OCIO offering. It does not manage assets, which eliminates the conflicts that come with wearing both hats.
Focus
Independent institutional investment consulting with proprietary research and manager database
Assets under advice
$600 billion advised
as of 2024-12
Cambridge Associates operates as a global investment consulting and outsourced chief investment officer firm, building custom portfolios that span traditional and alternative asset classes for institutional investors, endowments, foundations, private clients, and family offices. The firm was an early mover into private investing, and its coverage of private equity, credit, and venture capital sits alongside its public markets consulting practice.[Firm website]
Founded more than five decades ago, Cambridge Associates has more recently partnered with other data and research providers to expand institutional benchmarking coverage for private credit and real assets, extending a research franchise the firm has built over its long history.[Firm website]
Focus
Investment consulting and OCIO for endowments, foundations, and private clients with deep alternatives expertise
CRD#104942Visit- Investment Consultant
Canterbury Consulting
Newport Beach - Investment ConsultantFirm-reported
CAPTRUST
Raleigh, NCAssets under advice
$850 billion advised
CAPTRUST is a majority employee owned, independent registered investment advisor providing fiduciary advisory services across three client segments: individuals and families, retirement plan sponsors seeking investment management and defined contribution plan consulting, and endowments and foundations seeking fiduciary investment consulting on asset allocation, governance, spending policy, and mission aligned strategies.[Firm website]
The firm operates from a nationwide office network and describes its leadership as drawing on many former chief executives of the independent practices that have joined the CAPTRUST platform over the years, alongside a long standing emphasis on client retention across its advisory relationships.[Firm website]
Focus
Investment advisory and consulting for retirement plan sponsors, nonprofits, and institutional investors
- Investment ConsultantFirm-reported
Cliffwater
Marina del Rey, CAAssets under advice
$350 billion advised
Cliffwater provides alternatives advisory and outsourced chief investment officer services alongside a secondary fund management arm, offering perpetual fund vehicles, research, proprietary indexes, and advisory coverage across private equity buyouts and venture capital as well as private debt.[Firm website]
Chief Executive Officer Stephen Nesbitt leads the firm, which has branded itself around defining the alternatives investing category over its multi decade history.[Firm website]
Focus
Alternatives-focused investment consulting and direct lending across private markets
- Investment Consultant
Crossbow Partners AG
Baar - Investment Consultant
Ellwood Associates
Chicago - Investment ConsultantFirm-reported
Fund Evaluation Group
Cincinnati, OHAssets under advice
$95 billion advised
Fund Evaluation Group, known as FEG, is an independent, employee owned institutional investment management firm serving endowments, foundations, healthcare organizations, and financial advisors and family offices. Its partnership models include outsourced chief investment officer services, advisory services, and private wealth solutions across marketable strategies, private capital, and niche alternatives.[Firm website]
Founded nearly four decades ago, FEG appointed Holly Laiveling as Chief Technology Officer in a recent leadership addition, and the firm regularly publishes its own market commentary, including a quarterly portfolio insights letter and topical research on subjects such as hedge fund diversification and the pace of large public offerings.[Firm website]
Focus
Investment consulting and OCIO for endowments, foundations, and healthcare organizations
- Investment Consultant
Harbor Ithaka
Miami - Investment Consultant
Highland Associates
Birmingham - Investment Consultant
Highland Consulting Associates
Westlake - Investment Consultant
IPEX, INc.
Plymouth - Investment Consultant
Jisrak
Montreal Assets under advice
$429 billion advised
as of 2024-08
Marquette Associates is an independent investment consulting firm offering investment consulting, defined contribution consulting, outsourced chief investment officer services, and private client consulting to institutional clients across public markets, private equity, private credit, and real estate. The firm is wholly employee owned and has more recently expanded into wealth consulting through an affiliated advisory platform based in Chicago.[Firm website]
Chief Executive Officer Brian Wrubel chairs Marquette's board and executive committee, leading a partner group whose members include the firm's Chief Compliance Officer and its Director of Research. The firm also publishes its own recurring market commentary and webinar series for clients.[Firm website]
Focus
Investment consulting for endowments, foundations, healthcare systems, and retirement plans
CRD#21572VisitAssets under advice
$1.8 trillion advised
$9.7 billion regulatory AUM (SEC Form ADV Part 2A, as of December 31, 2023)
as of 2024-03
Key:Luke Riela
Meketa Investment Group provides investment consulting alongside outsourced and discretionary management services, offering advice, research, strategic guidance, reporting, and education to institutional and individual clients, including public pension plans, corporate retirement plans, and multiemployer plans with alternative investment portfolio construction needs.[Firm website]
The firm describes itself as independent and employee owned, drawing on a bench of investment professionals across its private markets and portfolio analysis teams. Meketa also publishes its own thought leadership, including research touching on quantitative approaches to manager selection and on trend following strategies.[Firm website]
Focus
Full-service investment consulting and fiduciary management for institutional investors
CRD#110601Visit- Investment ConsultantFirm-reported
Mercer
New York, NYAssets under advice
$16.2 trillion advised
Mercer advises on $16.2 trillion in global institutional assets, making it the largest investment consultant in the world by a wide margin. A Marsh McLennan subsidiary, Mercer covers the full consulting spectrum: manager research, asset allocation, portfolio construction, and sustainable investment advisory for pensions, endowments, foundations, insurers, and sovereigns. The firm also runs a sizable OCIO business and an alternatives sourcing platform, but its consulting practice stays non-discretionary. Clients get recommendations and implement themselves. Its manager research database covers thousands of strategies and is one of the most referenced in the industry.
Focus
Global investment consulting across asset allocation, manager research, and portfolio construction for institutional investors
Assets under advice
$265 billion advised
$55 billion regulatory AUM (SEC Form ADV Part 2A)
as of 2024-12
Morningstar Investment Management, a subsidiary of Morningstar Inc., advises on approximately $265 billion in institutional and intermediary assets. The firm leverages Morningstar's renowned research platform, including its proprietary Morningstar Analyst Ratings and quantitative assessment tools, to provide manager selection, asset allocation, portfolio construction, and investment consulting services. Operating from Chicago, the firm serves retirement plan sponsors, financial advisors, and institutional investors seeking research-backed advisory solutions. Morningstar Investment Management offers both advisory and managed portfolio services, with its consulting practice distinguished by the depth and transparency of its manager research methodology.
Focus
Research-driven investment consulting with proprietary manager ratings and portfolio analytics
CRD#108031VisitAssets under advice
$1.7 trillion advised
as of 2024-10
NEPC is a full service, research driven investment consulting firm serving governments, institutions, families, and individuals through advisory solutions, outsourced chief investment officer services, sustainable investing solutions, and a pooled employer retirement plan. Its client base spans endowments and foundations, healthcare systems, defined contribution plans, insurers, Taft Hartley multiemployer plans, corporate defined benefit plans, public funds, and private wealth clients including family offices.[Firm website]
NEPC publishes a running cadence of its own research, including a recurring pension focused market monitor, a macro commentary series, and regular market commentary pieces, alongside insights drawn from its own investment conference for clients.[Firm website]
Focus
Research-driven investment consulting for public funds, endowments, and healthcare systems
CRD#110562Visit- Investment ConsultantFirm-reported
Prime Buchholz
Portsmouth, NHAssets under advice
$76 billion advised
Prime Buchholz is an institutional investment consulting firm offering outsourced chief investment officer services alongside hybrid and implemented consulting, a managed platform called PrimePlus, and mission aligned investing, building custom portfolios and asset allocation strategies for community foundations, hospitals, schools, pensions, faith based organizations, and endowments.[Firm website]
The firm has been independent since its founding nearly four decades ago, and its principals include Jon Prime, Jim Buchholz, and Bill McCarron. It accepts no compensation from the managers it recommends, operating instead on a full service fee model. Prime Buchholz also publishes its own recurring market outlook and review pieces for clients.[Firm website]
Focus
Institutional investment consulting for foundations, hospitals, schools, and pensions
- Investment Consultant
RisCura
Cape Town - Investment ConsultantFirm-reported
RVK
Portland, ORAssets under advice
$3+ trillion advised
RVK is an independent, employee-owned investment consulting firm providing strategic investment advice and co-fiduciary services to corporate and public retirement systems, Taft-Hartley funds, endowments, foundations, and other nonprofit institutions. Headquartered in Portland, Oregon, with regional offices in Boise, Chicago, and New York City, RVK advises on over $3 trillion in institutional assets under advisement. The firm operates as a pure investment consultant without proprietary products or OCIO mandates, differentiating itself through independent, conflict-free advice. RVK is known for its rigorous quantitative research capabilities and long-term client relationships built on transparency and fiduciary accountability. In September 2024, the Pennsylvania State Employees' Retirement System hired RVK, an example of the co-fiduciary mandates the firm is known for.
Focus
Independent investment consulting with co-fiduciary approach for retirement systems and nonprofits
- Investment ConsultantFirm-reported
Segal Marco Advisors
New York, NYAssets under advice
$470 billion advised
Segal Marco Advisors provides institutional investment consulting and advisory services, including discretionary investment management and outsourced chief investment officer services, proprietary investment research, and corporate governance services such as proxy voting, serving multiemployer Taft Hartley plans, the public sector, corporate clients, financial intermediaries, and nonprofit institutions.[Firm website]
The firm is independent and employee owned and does not invest as a principal. Co Presidents Seth Almaliah and John Marco lead Segal Marco, a role they were named to in a recent leadership announcement.[Firm website]
Focus
Investment consulting for Taft-Hartley, public pension, and nonprofit institutional investors
- Investment Consultant
Stamford Associates
London - Investment ConsultantFirm-reported
Verus
Seattle, WAAssets under advice
$1.1 trillion advised
Verus advises on over $1.1 trillion in institutional assets, working with public pensions, nonprofits, multi-employer plans, and corporate retirement plans. Founded in 1986 as Wurts & Associates and based in Seattle, the firm provides both non-discretionary consulting and OCIO services. In February 2026, Verus announced a merger with Cerity Partners that extends the platform into private wealth advisory alongside its institutional practice, a combination that reflects the blurring line between institutional consulting and wealth management. The combination formally closed in March 2026.
Focus
Investment consulting and OCIO for public pensions, nonprofits, and multi-employer plans
- Investment ConsultantFirm-reported
Willis Towers Watson
London, UKAssets under advice
$4.0 trillion advised
WTW advises on $4.0 trillion in institutional assets and manages $162 billion in delegated OCIO mandates. The firm operates on an open-architecture model: clients choose between a pure advisory relationship where they retain decision-making authority, or a delegated solution where WTW implements strategy end to end. The consulting practice covers investment strategy, asset allocation, manager research, and monitoring for corporates, public pensions, endowments, insurers, and sovereigns across 40+ countries.
Focus
Global investment advisory with delegated solutions and manager research across public and private markets
CAPITAL LANDSCAPE
The Global Investment Consultant Landscape
Investment consultants sit between institutional capital and the managers who want it: they advise pensions, endowments, foundations, insurers, and healthcare systems on asset allocation, manager selection, and portfolio construction, while the client keeps decision-making authority, which is what separates consulting from a discretionary OCIO mandate.
Most figures disclosed by the firms in this directory are assets under advisement rather than assets under management, and the two are not comparable measures. This directory keeps each firm's own stated basis next to its figure and computes its combined management-class total only from figures stated as managed assets, so the headline number here reflects a small disclosed subset, not the scale of advised capital. The combined total counts each firm's primary directory figure only; separately disclosed regulatory-AUM secondary figures shown on individual cards are excluded from it.
LOCAL MARKET
Why Global
Investment consultants advise on a substantial share of institutional capital and directly shape which managers get access to it, making them among the most consequential gatekeepers in institutional fundraising.
A single favorable rating from a major consultant can open commitments across that firm's entire client base within one fundraising cycle. Many institutional investors treat the consultant shortlist as the starting point for a manager search, not a supplement to their own process.
Consultant relationships are built over years, not quarters. Managers typically engage research teams well before a fundraise, providing portfolio updates, operational transparency, and co-investment access to earn coverage and credibility ahead of the search itself.
The consultant-to-OCIO shift adds complexity for managers to navigate: the same firm may advise some clients non-discretionarily while allocating directly for others, so a manager relationship with one team inside a consulting firm does not guarantee reach into that firm's discretionary book.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which investment consulting firms are most trusted by institutional investors?
Trust in this industry is measured structurally rather than by a single most-trusted ranking: tenure, employee ownership, client retention, and independence from proprietary products. Several of the firms profiled here combine long track records with employee ownership. NEPC is a long-established, research-driven investment consultant with a large base of retainer clients. Marquette Associates is wholly employee owned with a strong long-term client retention record. Callan has operated independently for decades, and RVK is employee owned and structured as a co-fiduciary with no proprietary products. Cambridge Associates and Meketa each measure their own tenure in decades, with client bases anchored in the endowment and public-pension communities. None of this substitutes for a firm's own due diligence, but structural independence, ownership, and longevity are the factors institutional investors typically screen for first.
Which firms are leaders in selecting and partnering with third-party asset managers?
Manager selection and research is the core function of investment consulting, and several of the firms profiled here specialize in it. NEPC and Callan each maintain proprietary manager-performance databases used to build client shortlists. bfinance has completed a large volume of manager search engagements for institutional clients across many countries. Albourne Partners focuses exclusively on alternatives manager selection, spanning hedge funds, private equity, private credit, and real assets, across a global office network. Marquette Associates and Segal Marco Advisors run dedicated manager research teams for their public-pension and Taft-Hartley client bases. For funds raising capital, these are the gatekeepers whose ratings determine which strategies reach institutional shortlists.
What should insurers and large pension plans look for in a consultant with capital markets and regulatory expertise?
Insurers and large pension plans face regulatory and actuarial demands that generalist consultants do not handle well: insurance-specific capital treatment, ERISA fiduciary requirements, and liability-driven investing for defined benefit plans. Of the firms profiled here, several build their practices specifically around this. Aon Investments USA Inc. focuses on corporate defined benefit and defined contribution plans, including liability-driven investment strategy and plan de-risking. NEPC and Marquette Associates both name insurance companies as a client segment alongside their pension and endowment work. Segal Marco Advisors and Meketa specialize in Taft-Hartley multiemployer plans, which carry their own distinct regulatory regime under ERISA. The pattern across all of them: capital-allocation discipline for regulated institutional capital comes from consultants whose teams are structured around a specific regulatory framework, not generalist advisory.
How do I connect with investment consulting firms in this directory?
This directory is a reference platform, not an outreach or advisory service: it lists investment consulting firms drawn from each firm's own site and, where available, the maintained evidence register, so a fund manager can identify which firms' stated focus and client base actually match a given opportunity. From there, the most direct path is to reach out to each firm's own listed contact channel or website directly, since most investment consultants do not maintain public deal-intake processes and prefer a direct introduction describing the specific opportunity.