| LSE SU Alternative Investments Conference | |
| Abbreviation: | LSE AIC |
| Type: | Student conference |
| Location City: | London |
| Location Country: | United Kingdom |
| Language: | English |
| Leader Title: | Presidents |
| Leader Name: | Radhey Patel & Dipo Olukanni |
| Leader Title2: | Vice President |
| Leader Name2: | Skander Lejmi |
| Num Staff: | 35 |
The LSE SU Alternative Investments Conference (also known as the LSE AIC) is an international financial conference that focuses on hedge funds, private equity and venture capital held annually in London by the Alternative Investments Society (AIC), a Student’s Union society at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE).[1]
The Alternative Investments Society was founded in 2006 by a group of undergraduate students at the London School of Economics, and continues to be run by students from the university.[2] The first Alternative Investments Conference was a one-day event hosted on the LSE campus in 2007, and was attended by 200 students who heard from several notable investors.
The AIC has evolved considerably over its history, having changed venues and ultimately becoming the world’s largest student conference on hedge funds, private equity and venture capital. By 2024, it was help at the Marriott Hotel Grosvenor Square with 350 delegates and almost 60 industry leaders over 2 days.
The Conference takes place over two days at the five-star London Marriott Hotel Grosvenor Square, bringing together over 40 senior level industry leaders (see notable past speakers) and 320 student delegates from many of the world’s leading educational institutions. Delegates come from a range of backgrounds, including both undergraduates and postgraduates studying finance, law, engineering, history as well as many other disciplines.[3] Admission to the Conference is competitive, with only 4.3% of applicants to AIC 2017 being selected to attend. The Conference is international in character, with applicants coming from over 200 universities located across more than 120 countries world wide.
The format of the Conference sees delegates attend keynote speeches, panel discussions and workshop sessions designed to allow for them to learn from and interact with experienced professionals from within the investment community. Networking events are also held during the Conference by the AIC’s partner firms, as well as a dinner for all attending delegates hosted during the evening of the first day of the event. Sponsor firms of the AIC include Point72 Asset Management, Dartmouth Partners, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Terra Firma Capital Partners, GAM, Amicus, Bain & Company, Bain Capital, 3i, Patron Capital, Lansdowne Partners, Stable Asset Management, and Dechert.[4]
The Conference is well regarded on campus, as well as outside of the LSE, having been cited in the media a number of times[5] [6] [7] and described by the Financial Times as 'a chance for the best brains in asset management to meet'.[8] Several keynote sessions from past conferences are also available to watch online.[9]
Several notable past speakers at the AIC include: