AMHERST, MASS, February 6, 2009—The CAIA Association, the global educational association for alternative investment practitioners, announced today the opening of their new Amherst, Massachusetts headquarters, as well as their first satellite office in Surrey, UK.

"The market environment is evolving rapidly, and with it the need for investment professionals to stay current," said Craig Asche, executive director of the CAIA Association. "Our move to new offices and the opening of our first satellite office reflect the CAIA Association's commitment to the future of the alternative industry, ensuring we have the resources and infrastructure needed to continue our mission of delivering the highest quality program and services to our candidates and members."

In 2008, the CAIA Association expanded their staffing by 77%, including the addition of Dr. Hossein Kazemi as the managing director of the CAIA program.  In order to serve the needs of the rapidly growing CAIA Association membership, additional staff in the areas of curriculum development, member services, candidate services, marketing & industry relations, and examinations is expected.

The new Amherst headquarters, which will allow for up to 55 employees, includes a private research library dedicated to curriculum development, new video conferencing technologies, and a spacious conference area designed to be used for annual meetings, AI roundtables, small conferences, board meetings, and seminars.

The space was renovated for the CAIA Association with a focus on environmental stewardship.  According to David Marley of Diversified Construction Services, LLC, "we've invested in some of the highest energy efficient equipment available.  The CAIA space was designed and constructed following Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building standards and this summer 100 University Drive will be applying for LEED certification."

Global Expansion

In addition to the new Amherst headquarters, the CAIA Association also announced the opening of their first satellite office in Surrey, UK.

"The CAIA Association's UK office represents the first of the regional offices we will be establishing in order to enhance our global presence, expand our industry associations, and increase our member activities throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa," said Asche.

Steve Wallace, CAIA, will head the CAIA Association UK office, as the associate director of industry relations for the Europe, Middle East, and Africa regions.

When asked about the long term goals of the UK office, Wallace explained, "Given the ever growing number of CAIA candidates and members from the EMEA region, the establishment of a UK office is going to be extremely well positioned to meet the increased dialogue required with regulators, industry associations and firms from such a diverse region. I am extremely positive on the CAIA designation as the professional designation in alternative investments and believe the current state of affairs is only going to fuel further growth as the need for educated and ethical alternative investment professionals expands around the globe."