The top 100 alternative investment managers globally manageassets exceeding $3 trillion. According to the Global AlternativesSurvey, produced by Towers Watson in conjunction with FinancialTimes, shows that of the top alternative investment managers, realestate managers have the largest share of assets or $1.1 trillion,followed by private equity managers, $696 billion, hedge funds,$643 billion, private equity fund of funds, $288 billion), fund ofhedge funds, $187 billion, infrastructure, $119 billion, andcommodities, $101 billion.

The research also found that total global alternative assetsunder management are now $4.9 trillion and are split between assetclasses in similar portions as the Top 100 investment managers.

“The ongoing global economic crisis has driven all types ofinstitutional investors toward having more diversified investmentportfolios, with investment managers offering significantalternative capabilities being the clear beneficiaries. Notably,allocations to alternative assets now account for 20 percent of allpension fund assets globally, up from 5 percent 15 years ago,” saidCraig Baker, global head of research at Towers WatsonInvestment.