Palm Beach Hedge Fund Event to Feature Ash Williams, Florida Pension Fund Executive, As Keynote Speaker

PALM BEACH GARDENS, FLA. (January 25, 2016) — The 22nd Annual Alpha Hedge East Conference is pleased to announce that Ash Williams, Executive Director and CIO of the Florida State Board of Administration, will serve as a keynote speaker during the two-day event scheduled for February 29 – March 1.

Williams is responsible for managing approximately $180 billion in assets including those of the Florida Retirement System, the fifth largest public pension fund in the United States. Prior to joining the state board, Williams was a Managing Director at Fir Tree Partners and President and CEO of Schroder Capital Management, both headquartered in New York.

The Alpha Hedge East Conference will offer participants an opportunity to meet selectively with managers, as well as panels about investment strategies, industry trends, developments in seeding and fundraising.

The conference is a joint production of the Florida Alternative Investment Association (FLAIA) of Miami and the Information Management Network (IMN) of New York. Sessions include “Reasons to Relocate to the Sunshine State;” “State of the Industry 2016;” “Student Debt: Finding Opportunities in the Morass;” “Follow the Money: Trends in Seeding;” “Fund of Funds and Multi Family Office Investing;” “Investment Opportunities in Latin America;” “Global Macro: Boats against the Current?” and “Raising Capital in a Tough Environment.”

“As our battered financial markets continue to find their way amid considerable macroeconomic turmoil, we feel fortunate to have secured the forward-looking viewpoints of Ash Williams,” said Michael Corcelli, founder of the Florida Alternative Investment Association and Managing Member of Alexander Alternative Capital LLC in Miami.

Williams is scheduled to appear as the keynote speaker for the second day of the Alpha Hedge East Conference. His remarks will be on the record for news media representatives who attend the event. He will also be available for interviews.

He has extensive experience with both the State Board of Administration and Florida government, serving as Executive Director of the SBA from 1991 to 1996 and in senior management for Florida’s executive and legislative branches.

Williams chairs the boards of the Economic Club of Florida and the Managed Funds Association’s Institutional Investor Advisory Council. In addition, he serves as a Trustee of the Florida State University Foundation and the National Institute for Public Finance, is on the Investment Committees of the Episcopal Diocese of Florida and the Community Foundation of North Florida and the Advisory Boards of the Robert Toigo Foundation and Alternative Investment Forum.

Williams holds BS and MBA degrees from Florida State University and completed post graduate programs at University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.

The conference is taking place at the PGA National Resort & Spa, Palm Beach Gardens.

News media representatives and others interested in attending this event should email Ronald Saavedra at ronald.saavedra@imn.org or visit the homepage: www.imn.org/alphaeast16. FLAIA members receive a 20 percent discount. Reference code: FLAIA. Complimentary passes are available for media members, representatives of qualified pension funds, foundations, endowments and family offices as well as retail investment advisors.

ABOUT FLAIA

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Formed in 2007, the Florida Alternative Investment Association is an exclusive not-for-profit trade association, dedicated to informing and uniting the growing population of Florida’s Alternative Investment cluster. FLAIA’s mission spans a broad-range of areas including Community Building, Education, Branding, Capital Attraction, Business Attraction, and Policy Optimization. For more information, visit www.blog.flaia.org.

ABOUT IMN

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IMN, founded in 1994, is a global organizer of institutional finance & investment conferences. In 2004 the business was acquired by Euromoney Institutional Investor PLC, a UK company listed on the London Stock Exchange. IMN produces conferences in the following industries: Structured Finance, Real Estate and Investment Management. Hallmarks of an IMN conference are a quality and rigorously vetted speaking faculty, interactive panel discussions and a balanced audience composition which facilitates excellent networking opportunities. For more information, visit www.imn.org.

For questions or further information contact David Lyons of Lyons Strategic Communications at 954-612-7225 or via email at Davidvlyons@gmail.com.