July 2020
Vol 7 | Issue 324

Q&A with Michael Von Bevern of Socium Fund Services

CEO

Principal Series:

Socium partners with GPs (private equity, real estate, venture capital and private credit funds) and LPs to provide fund administration solutions and back and middle office support. We combine extensive industry expertise with advanced technology to deliver highly customized services for our clients.

GPs and LPs require superior accounting and reporting services. Socium offers the highest level of expertise and professionalism so that firms can focus on creating value for investors and constituents. We understand the unique complexities of private funds and are unrivaled in our ability to satisfy regulatory and reporting requirements. Our combination of fund expertise and technology allows our clients to be responsive and transparent, enhancing their competitiveness.

Access to best in class technology is no longer out of reach for emerging fund firms or smaller LPs. Socium has sourced best of breed advanced solutions for fund accounting, limited partner reporting and waterfall calculations that were designed for private investment strategies, while remaining cost-effective. We can help firms achieve greater efficiency and compliance, creating a competitive advantage that supports fund performance and allows the GP or LP to focus on their core competency of generating alpha.

 


Family Office Insights is a voluntary, “opt-in” collaborative peer-to-peer community of single family offices, qualified investors and institutional investors. Join the community here www.familyofficeinsights.com


The Family Office Insights platform was created for family offices large and small that have diverse support needs as their portfolios evolve. What can Socium do for them?

Indeed, family offices do have unique support scenarios in many cases, depending on how they’ve structured their operations and what they’ve invested in.

We are a team of experts with broad asset expertise, dedicated to providing our clients with the highest touch, boutique style offering that caters to their back and middle office support needs.

Family investment operations are more like those of private funds than they ever were before. Internal teams are investing in direct deals to save on fees and launching their own funds at a record rate, often reporting to multiple family members or other family office investors.

Such activities require the proper support from a thoughtful operator and knowledge partner like Socium, that is intent on superior client service and has the best technology, like automated waterfall and carry modeling tools for example, to get the job done accurately and efficiently. We are committed to creating bespoke and fully custom service models for each client. If a client requires waterfall only calculations, we can be engaged just for that.

How is Socium’s approach differentiated from other back and middle office support providers?

We have deliberately minimized the degree of separation between client and provider to almost nothing. Our entrepreneurial culture is based on the following core principles, enabling an internal ownership of our work like that of a direct hire:

Integrity – We operate with the utmost integrity and ethical standards. Additionally, the information entrusted to us by our clients is our foremost concern.

Commitment – We are committed to doing our very best in helping our clients become successful. We are committed to best practices and exceeding industry standards.

People & Partners – We treat all our employees and clients as partners. We believe in sharing our success with our people and that they reap the benefits of their efforts.

Fairness – We believe in building trust, in being fair, honest and transparent. We do not believe in overcommitting and creating false expectations. We believe that a true partnership is one that is valued by both Socium and its clients.

Innovation – We believe in constant evaluation of our business model and how we provide our services to our clients. We believe strongly in leveraging technology to perform routine tasks and allowing our human resources to become value‐added partners with our clients.

Accessibility – We believe in accessibility and proximity to our clients. We are committed to operating close to our clients and above all to always be accessible.

Respect – We respect our employees, contractors and our clients and operate in an ethical manner that begets trust and long‐term relationships.

Collaborative – First and foremost, we believe in solving problems. We work tirelessly with our clients to ensure they have the support they need to maximize their chances for success.

Forward thinking – We are innovators and will continue to challenge the status quo for the benefit of our clients and team.

Do you take on special projects?

As an owner operated and independent business we are open to building relationships and often discuss special projects with LPs and GPs to see if there is a way that Socium can alleviate some pain point for them. Some of the bigger projects we have worked on related to advisory work in the context of best practice studies and operational platform initiatives.

Feel free to contact us with what I call ‘people, process and technology’ engagements, as we are familiar with most technology platforms in our realm and we’re wedded to the most appropriate course of action for our clients.


Michael Von Bevern of Socium Fund Services

Michael Von Bevern co-founded Socium Fund Services to bring the alternative asset community a private equity focused fund administrator that combines advanced technology with consultative client service. An entrepreneurial leader with over 26 years of financial services experience in trading, operations and fund administration, Michael’s awareness of the needs of the private equity industry fueled his desire to offer an integrated solution of best in breed technology at a value price.

Prior to co-founding Socium, Michael was a Senior Managing Director and the Head of U.S. Operations for the Alternative Investment Solutions group of U.S. Bancorp Fund Services. Prior to joining U.S. Bancorp, Michael was a non-agency mortgage and whole loan trader at Dillon Read Capital Management. He began his career in public accounting at KPMG and spent time at Merrill Lynch in Fixed Income Operations and PaineWebber as the CFO of the Commercial Real Estate Division.

Michael is a Certified Public Accountant in the State of New York. He is also a graduate of Wagner College with a Bachelor’s of Science in Accountancy and St. John’s University, earning his Master’s Degree in Business Administration.

Contact Michael mvonbevern@sociumllc.com; 973.715.3282