paRT 1 – OVERVIEW AND OUTLOOK
OUR BUSINESS
Brookfield is a global alternative asset manager with over $175 billion in assets under management. For more than 100 years we have owned and operated assets on behalf of shareholders and clients with a focus on property, renewable energy, infrastructure and private equity.
We manage a wide range of investment funds and other entities that enable institutional and retail clients to invest alongside us in these assets. As at December 31, 2013, our managed funds and entities represented approximately $80 billion of invested and committed fee bearing capital, of which $26 billion was from Brookfield. These products include publicly traded entities that are listed on major stock exchanges as well as private institutional partnerships that are available to accredited investors, typically pension funds, endowments and other institutional investors. We also manage public securities through a series of segregated accounts and mutual funds.
Our business model is simple: utilize our global reach to identify and acquire high-quality assets at favourable valuations, finance them on a long-term basis, enhance the cash flows and values of these assets through our operating platforms to earn reliable, attractive long-term total returns, and when opportunities arise realize capital from asset sales or refinancings.
Organization Structure
Our operations are organized into four principal groups (“operating platforms”): property, renewable energy, infrastructure and private equity. These platforms are responsible for operating the assets owned by our various funds and investee companies. The equity capital invested in these assets is provided by a series of listed and private funds managed by us that are in turn funded by capital from ourselves and our clients.
We have formed large capitalization listed entities in each of our property, renewable energy and infrastructure segments, which serve as the primary vehicles through which we will invest in each respective segment. As well as owning assets directly, these entities serve as the cornerstone investors in our institutional private funds, alongside capital committed by institutional investors. For example, within our infrastructure operations, we have established Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P. (“BIP” or “Brookfield Infrastructure Partners”), a publicly listed entity that currently has a $8.2 billion market capitalization. In addition to owning and operating a portfolio of infrastructure assets, BIP is also the cornerstone investor in our Brookfield Infrastructure Fund II, a private investment partnership with $7.0 billion of committed capital. This approach enables us to attract a broad range of public and private investment capital and the ability to match our various investment strategies with the most appropriate form of capital.
Our private equity business is conducted primarily through private funds with capital provided by institutions and ourselves. We do not currently envisage the formation of a listed entity within these operations as we do not believe these investments would be properly valued in the capital markets on a standalone basis.
Our balance sheet capital is invested primarily in our three flagship listed issuers, our private equity funds, and in several directly held investments and businesses.
The following chart is a condensed version of our organizational structure.