Key Takeaways
- • CAIA Association unveiled Vision 2035, a strategy to guide the alternative investment profession through its next era, and CAIA.nxt™, a reimagined enterprise learning platform, at ALTSUK in London.
- • CAIA's Vision 2035 is anchored by four priorities: Activating the Network Advantage, The Primacy of Community, CAIA.nxt™: The Future of Learning, and The Capital of Private Capital.
- • CAIA.nxt™ replaces the UniFi platform; it is free to CAIA Members and offers subscription-based models for other industry stakeholders.
- • CEO John L. Bowman cited assets under management projected to surpass $24 trillion by 2028 and said the systems governing alternatives have not kept pace with capital growth.
- • The strategy follows a global listening tour and hundreds of conversations with allocators, managers, regulators and educators, which produced eight key insights, including public-private convergence, tokenization and AI adoption.
Summary
The CAIA Association used its appearance at ALTSUK in London to announce Vision 2035, a strategy it describes as a guide for the investment profession through its next era, alongside the launch of CAIA.nxt™, a reimagined enterprise learning platform. According to the announcement, CAIA positions itself as an independent, member-driven body that is not beholden to any single product, platform or profit motive, giving it a vantage point across allocators, asset managers, regulators and educators.
CEO John L. Bowman argued that the systems governing alternative investments have lagged the industry's expansion. He cited projections that alternatives assets under management will surpass $24 trillion by 2028, and said that while capital has surged into private markets, the frameworks for guiding and governing the space have not evolved at the same pace. Bowman described traditional education and industry engagement models as no longer fit for purpose.
Vision 2035 was developed through a global listening tour earlier in 2025 and hundreds of conversations with allocators, asset managers, regulators, educators and other stakeholders. The process produced eight insights, including the blurring of public and private markets, evolving product design such as evergreen vehicles and tokenized funds, a changed geopolitical and macro climate, the operational impact of artificial intelligence, a new professional development toolkit, blockchain-enabled markets, the importance of organizational culture, and new centers of private capital across Asia, the Middle East and Africa. The organization says these insights point toward an industry that is borderless, digital yet relational, disruptive and in need of new organizational models.
CAIA.nxt™ reintroduces the existing UniFi platform with a refreshed identity, modern user experience and expanded content blueprint. The NXT ecosystem is free to CAIA Members and offers subscription-based models for other industry stakeholders. Steven Novakovic, CAIA, CFA, Managing Director, CAIA Educational Programs, said NXT users gain practical insights they can apply immediately. Bowman stated that by 2035 CAIA expects to have built an operating system that transforms how the investment world learns, connects and allocates capital, and invited partners to join the initiative. Further details are available at caia.org/Vision-2035.
CEO John L. Bowman argued that the systems governing alternative investments have lagged the industry's expansion. He cited projections that alternatives assets under management will surpass $24 trillion by 2028, and said that while capital has surged into private markets, the frameworks for guiding and governing the space have not evolved at the same pace. Bowman described traditional education and industry engagement models as no longer fit for purpose.
Vision 2035 was developed through a global listening tour earlier in 2025 and hundreds of conversations with allocators, asset managers, regulators, educators and other stakeholders. The process produced eight insights, including the blurring of public and private markets, evolving product design such as evergreen vehicles and tokenized funds, a changed geopolitical and macro climate, the operational impact of artificial intelligence, a new professional development toolkit, blockchain-enabled markets, the importance of organizational culture, and new centers of private capital across Asia, the Middle East and Africa. The organization says these insights point toward an industry that is borderless, digital yet relational, disruptive and in need of new organizational models.
CAIA.nxt™ reintroduces the existing UniFi platform with a refreshed identity, modern user experience and expanded content blueprint. The NXT ecosystem is free to CAIA Members and offers subscription-based models for other industry stakeholders. Steven Novakovic, CAIA, CFA, Managing Director, CAIA Educational Programs, said NXT users gain practical insights they can apply immediately. Bowman stated that by 2035 CAIA expects to have built an operating system that transforms how the investment world learns, connects and allocates capital, and invited partners to join the initiative. Further details are available at caia.org/Vision-2035.
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