There's a common notion that alternative investment funds are reserved for very high net worth individuals. A recent study by Northern Trust has found that 40 percent of millionaire investors had no holdings in alternative investments. This confirms what I have long thought: It takes a lot of time and expertise to wisely invest in these sorts of products, so for hedge funds and private equity funds, it really is a pension-oriented game. And when you get right down to it, they are investing on behalf of future pensioners, which means the average Joe and Jane, the teachers, cops, civil servants. For the most part, higher net worth investors are comfortable with risk, and they remain an optimistic bunch. They are certainly the target of lots of financial marketing these days.

For more on the survey:
- here's an article from Fortune