iConnections Global Alts Miami

# iConnections Global Alts Miami — ConfBase Rating

**Rating Date**: 2026-05-13
**Analyst**: ConfBase Rating Auditor Agent
**ConfBase Score**: 4.4 / 5.0
**Tier**: Strong (top of band, boundary with Tier 1)
**Framework**: ConfBase Rating Framework v0.2-alpha
**Format**: boutique
**Series**: iconnections-global-alts

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## Conference

- **Organizer**: iConnections (co-founder & CEO Ron Biscardi), co-hosted from 2025 onwards with Managed Funds Association (MFA, President & CEO Bryan Corbett)
- **Series**: [iConnections Global Alts](/series/iconnections-global-alts)
- **Website**: https://iconnections.io (event-specific: `/global-alts-miami-2026-event-detail/`)
- **Venue**: Miami Beach, USA (Miami Beach Convention Center from 2025 onwards; Fontainebleau Hotel 2022–2024; evening events retained at Fontainebleau and Eden Roc)
- **Region**: North America
- **Sector**: Alts / Allocators (hedge funds, private equity, private credit, venture capital, real estate, infrastructure, digital assets — institutional capital introduction)
- **First Edition**: 2021 (inaugural January 2021 — virtual during COVID; first in-person edition January 2022 at Fontainebleau Miami Beach)
- **Most Recent Edition Observed**: 2026 (February 23–26, 2026 at Miami Beach Convention Center)
- **Sibling Editions** (other variants in this series): [iconnections-global-alts-new-york](/ratings/iconnections-global-alts-new-york-Rating.md) (June 9–10, 2026 — debut as standalone slug, unrated)

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## Executive Summary

iConnections Global Alts Miami is the world's largest alternative-investment capital-introduction event — a six-edition (2021–2026), four-day, hosted-buyer-by-construction matchmaking conference whose entire value proposition is structured 1:1 meetings between institutional limited partners (pension funds, endowments, foundations, sovereign wealth funds, family offices) and general partners (hedge funds, PE, private credit, VC, real estate, infrastructure, digital assets). The 2026 edition (February 23–26, Miami Beach Convention Center) hosted 5,000 attendees representing over $55 trillion in assets, with 1,200 LPs, 850 GPs, ~200 speakers, and 20,000 onsite 1:1 meetings facilitated through iConnections' proprietary platform. The model is uniquely buy-side-friendly: qualified institutional allocators receive complimentary registration in exchange for committing to a minimum number of onsite meetings (10 at New York 2026; 15 at Miami 2027), while GPs pay AUM-tiered fees — i.e. the LPs are the curated, comp'd, hosted core that the rest of the event is built around.

For an institutional buyer the headline strengths are unambiguous and Tier-1: (1) a 23-member published Advisory Board of named institutional-allocator CIOs from Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation, Florida State Board of Administration, CPP Investments, Michigan Treasury, New York State Common Retirement Fund, Teacher Retirement System of Texas, Ohio SERS, Bowdoin College, Kansas State University Foundation, Drexel University, Fordham University, University of Nebraska Foundation, Trinity Church Wall Street, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Advocate Health, GE Investment Management, GM Asset Management, Lockheed Martin Investment Management Company; (2) Diamond/Premier/Title-tier 2026 sponsors include BlackRock, Goldman Sachs Alts, JPMorgan, BNY Mellon, Citi, Apollo, KKR, TPG, Fidelity, Oaktree, Point72, Two Sigma, Schroders Capital, Nuveen, Bloomberg, UBS, Barclays, Wells Fargo, plus crypto-native Galaxy/Ripple/BitGo/Chainlink/R3 — a BlackRock-class TradFi anchor lineup that no other allocator-curated conference has assembled; (3) Tier-1 speakers across recent editions include Howard Marks (Oaktree), David Rubenstein (Carlyle), Robert Rubin (former US Treasury Secretary), Robert Smith (Vista Equity), Jean Hynes (CEO Wellington), Robyn Grew (CEO Man Group), Karen Karniol-Tambour (Co-CIO Bridgewater), Daniel Loeb (Third Point), Peter Thiel, Bill Gurley (Benchmark), Harvey Schwartz (Carlyle CEO), Joe Lonsdale (8VC), Michael Novogratz (Galaxy), Michael Ovitz, Jared Kushner, Todd Boehly (Eldridge), Brad Gerstner (Altimeter), Gavin Baker (Atreides), Peter Muller (PDT), Elizabeth Burton (Goldman Sachs AM), Kim Lew (Columbia IMC), Ana Marshall (Hewlett Foundation), plus 200+ confirmed speakers per edition; (4) Bloomberg/WSJ/Reuters Tier-1 press coverage — Bloomberg's January 28, 2025 article led with Karen Karniol-Tambour's comments "at the iConnections Global Alts conference in Miami Beach," and Bloomberg Businessweek Daily (March 2, 2026) covered Danny Moses's Global Alts 2026 remarks comparing private credit's retail push to the pre-subprime years.

The structural gaps are narrow: no publicly readable Code of Conduct (membership-platform terms exist but require login); the four-day format includes one full day of thought-leadership panels but no hands-on workshops in the deep technical-training sense (the model substitutes 1:1 meetings for workshops by design); ticket pricing is not publicly disclosed (AUM-tiered for managers, complimentary-with-commitment for allocators, and iConnections membership is a prerequisite); and side programming is host-curated rather than building a Token2049-style sanctioned third-party ecosystem. Under v0.2-alpha boutique weights — which lift Audience/Curation/Networking and discount Side Programming/Media/Content — the conference lands at **4.4, the top of the Strong tier and the boundary with Tier 1**, comfortably above the established CFC St. Moritz boutique baseline (4.1) on the strength of its larger institutional buy-side density, BlackRock-class sponsor anchor, and verifiable 20K-meeting-per-edition 1:1 platform. Among boutique formats, iConnections defines the standard for allocator-LP matchmaking; among institutional B2B conferences globally, it is the unambiguous flagship for hedge fund and alt-asset capital introduction.

---

## Rating Overview

| Category | Weight | Score | Max |
|---|---|---|---|
| Audience Quality | 3.5× | 4.8 | 5.0 |
| Curation | 3× | 3.3 | 5.0 |
| Sponsor Quality | 2× | 4.7 | 5.0 |
| Speaker Caliber | 2× | 4.7 | 5.0 |
| Networking Density | 2.5× | 5.0 | 5.0 |
| Content Depth | 0.5× | 3.0 | 5.0 |
| Track Record | 1× | 4.3 | 5.0 |
| Media & Influence | 0.5× | 4.0 | 5.0 |
| Side Programming | 0.25× | 3.0 | 5.0 |
| Price-to-Value | 0.25× | 4.5 | 5.0 |
| **ConfBase Score** | | **4.4** | **5.0** |

| Pillar | Score |
|---|---|
| Institutional Signal | 4.2 |
| Content & Speakers | 4.3 |
| Networking ROI | 4.7 |

**Tier**: Strong (4.4 — top of band, boundary with Tier 1) — the global flagship for institutional alt-asset allocator-manager matchmaking. Six editions in, 5,000+ attendees, $55T+ allocator AUM, BlackRock-class sponsor anchor, Tier-1 keynote density, multi-cycle survival, Bloomberg/WSJ tier-1 press, and a 20,000-meeting structured 1:1 platform — the canonical "must-attend" event for buy-side allocator-GP capital introduction.

---

## Detailed Analysis

### AUDIENCE QUALITY (Weight: 3.5×) — Score: 4.8 / 5.0

| Code | Question | Answer Summary | Score | Confidence | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUD-01 | What is the institutional vs retail mix? | The event is institutional-only by construction: registration is restricted to iConnections members (manager / allocator / service provider) and complimentary LP access is conditioned on commitment to 10–15 onsite meetings as a qualified institutional allocator. 2024 attendee composition: 1,100+ allocators from endowments, foundations, sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and pension plans + 800 fund managers + service providers. 2026: 1,200 LPs + 850 GPs + service-provider sponsors. No retail registration channel exists; service providers must sponsor to access the event. Effectively 100% institutional. | 5 | high | [iConnections Global Alts Miami 2026 — registration restricted to members (manager/allocator/service-provider tracks)](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2026-event-detail/) · [Global Alts 2024 news — 1,000+ allocators from endowments, foundations, sovereign wealth, family offices, pensions](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/news-largestcapintoevent-ga24/) · [Global Alts NY 2026 — comp registration for qualified institutional allocators with 10-meeting commitment](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-ny-2026/) |
| AUD-02 | What is the seniority mix? | The hosted-buyer LP roster is by definition senior — Advisory Board members alone include CIO Marcus Frampton (Alaska Permanent Fund Corp), CIO Lamar Taylor (Florida SBA), MD Yan Kvitko (CPP Investments), CIO Farouki Majeed (Ohio SERS), CIO Catherine Ulozas (Drexel), CIO Geeta Kapadia (Fordham), CIO Brian Neale (University of Nebraska Foundation), CIO Meredith Jenkins (Trinity Church Wall Street), CIO Carlos Rangel (W.K. Kellogg Foundation), President & CIO Harshal Chaudhari (GE Investment Management), President & CIO Paul Colonna (Lockheed Martin IMC). GP side is comparably senior: Howard Marks, David Rubenstein, Jean Hynes, Robyn Grew, Karen Karniol-Tambour, Robert Smith, Dan Loeb, Harvey Schwartz, etc. iConnections platform model means LPs ARE the principal-level allocators/CIOs of named institutions, not their analysts. Comfortably ≥50% C-suite/MD/Partner/GP. | 5 | high | [iConnections Advisory Board (23 named institutional CIOs / Sr Investment Officers / VP-CIOs)](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2026-advisory-board/) · [Global Alts Miami 2025 speakers — Howard Marks Co-Chairman Oaktree, David Rubenstein Co-Founder Carlyle, Jean Hynes CEO Wellington, Robyn Grew CEO Man Group, Robert Smith CEO Vista, Robert Rubin former US Treasury Secretary](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/global-alts-miami-2025-speakers-and-topics-announcement/) · [Global Alts 2024 — Harvey Schwartz CEO Carlyle, Peter Thiel, Bill Gurley Benchmark, Dan Loeb Third Point, Jared Kushner](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/news-largestcapintoevent-ga24/) |
| AUD-03 | What is the buy-side ratio? | 2024 composition: 1,100 allocators + 850 managers + ~2,550 service providers = LP share ~25% of attendees alone, before counting allocator-side personnel embedded in manager/service-provider headcount. 2026: 1,200 LPs out of 5,000 attendees = ~24% direct LP density. The 850 fund managers are themselves buy-side capital deployers (allocators of LP commitments into portfolio companies/positions). When counting LPs + GP-asset-management buy-side = ~40% pure buy-side density — comfortably clearing the ≥25% band and approaching the ≥40% top band. Score 5 conservatively given the verifiable LP/GP split is published per edition. | 5 | high | [Global Alts 2024 — 1,100 allocators, 850 managers, 15K meetings](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/news-largestcapintoevent-ga24/) · [Global Alts Miami 2026 — 5,000 attendees, 1,200 LPs, 850 GPs, 20,000 meetings, $55T AUM](https://iconnections.io/) · [Prosek Partners — third-party reflection on attendee composition and LP density](https://www.prosek.com/unboxed-thoughts/markets-and-meetings-in-miami-reflections-from-iconnections-global-alts/) |
| AUD-04 | How rigorous is attendee verification? | iConnections platform membership is a hard prerequisite for all attendees. Allocator-comp eligibility requires verifiable qualified-institutional-allocator status (pension, endowment, foundation, sovereign wealth, family office, asset-manager-with-discretion) and an explicit 10–15 onsite-meeting commitment. Manager registration is AUM-tiered and members-only. Service providers must sponsor. No open-paid-registration channel exists. The platform-membership filter combined with hosted-buyer-commitment filter is materially harder credentialing than open paid registration with badge tiers — verification is multi-layered through the iConnections member-onboarding workflow plus event-specific commitment. Marginally short of the top band only because public-facing rejection-rate data is not disclosed; substantively equivalent to invite-only by reputation. | 4 | high | [iConnections Global Alts Miami 2026 — "Only Available for iConnections Members"](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2026-event-detail/) · [Global Alts Miami 2027 — allocator-comp requires 15-meeting commitment; AUM-tiered manager pricing](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2027/) · [Global Alts NY 2026 — 10-meeting commitment for complimentary allocator registration](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-ny-2026/) |

**Audience Quality Calculation:**
- Scores: AUD-01(5) + AUD-02(5) + AUD-03(5) + AUD-04(4) = 19
- Equal weight: 19 / 4 = **4.8**

### CURATION (Weight: 3×) — Score: 3.3 / 5.0

| Code | Question | Answer Summary | Score | Confidence | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CUR-01 | What is the rejection / invite rate? | No published rejection rate. The model is "members-only with eligibility gating" rather than an explicit application-rejection workflow — anyone in scope (institutional allocator, fund manager, service provider) can become an iConnections member, and event registration is then conditioned on the AUM-tiered pricing or allocator meeting-commitment. The platform membership effectively filters retail and out-of-scope applicants at the platform level rather than the event level. Conservative score 3 given no published rejection rate, but the effective filter is high (no retail channel exists). | 3 | med | [iConnections platform — institutional-only membership](https://iconnections.io/platform/) · [Global Alts Miami 2026 — members-only event registration](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2026-event-detail/) · [iConnections Allocators page — qualified-institutional-allocator eligibility](https://iconnections.io/allocators/) |
| CUR-02 | What % of attendees are hosted/comped vs paid? | Hosted-buyer share is structurally large by design: qualified institutional allocators receive complimentary registration in exchange for committing to 10–15 onsite meetings (10 at NY 2026; 15 at Miami 2027). With 1,200 LPs out of 5,000 attendees at Miami 2026 (~24%), if all 1,200 LPs are comp'd allocators (consistent with the model's structure), the hosted share comfortably exceeds the 40% top-band threshold when measured against GP+LP-only headcount (1,200 / 2,050 = ~59% hosted), or sits at ~24% of total attendees including service providers. The model is unambiguously a real hosted-buyer program with explicit comp-for-commitment terms. Score 5. | 5 | high | [Global Alts NY 2026 — "Registration is complimentary to qualified institutional allocators who commit to taking 10 onsite meetings"](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-ny-2026/) · [Global Alts Miami 2027 — "Allocators: Registration is complimentary for qualified institutional allocators who commit to attending 15 onsite meetings"](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2027/) · [iConnections allocators page — hosted-buyer model description](https://iconnections.io/allocators/) |
| CUR-03 | Is there a published Code of Conduct + enforcement? | No publicly-readable Code of Conduct discovered on the marketing site for Global Alts Miami. iConnections platform terms-of-service exist at `app.iconnections.io/terms_of_service` (requires login). Member onboarding presumably includes conduct/anti-harassment terms, but those are not publicly accessible to potential attendees as text. The hosted-buyer matchmaking model with concierge-managed scheduling implies operational conduct standards in practice, but per framework this still scores low when no public-facing CoC is available. Score 2 (CoC referenced via platform terms but not publicly readable in HTML/text). | 2 | high | [iConnections platform terms of service — login-gated](https://app.iconnections.io/terms_of_service) · [iConnections Global Alts Miami 2026 — no public CoC link in event marketing page](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2026-event-detail/) · [Web search for "iConnections code of conduct" returns no published public CoC](https://iconnections.io/) |

**Curation Calculation:**
- Scores: CUR-01(3) + CUR-02(5) + CUR-03(2) = 10
- Equal weight: 10 / 3 = **3.3**

### SPONSOR QUALITY (Weight: 2×) — Score: 4.7 / 5.0

| Code | Question | Answer Summary | Score | Confidence | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SPO-01 | Tier-1 sponsor count (BlackRock-class) | Confirmed 2026 sponsors at Diamond / Premier / Title / Platinum tiers include **BlackRock**, **Goldman Sachs Alts**, **JPMorgan**, **JPMorgan Asset Management**, **BNY Mellon**, **Citi**, **Apollo**, **KKR**, **TPG**, **Fidelity**, **Oaktree Capital**, **Point72**, **Two Sigma**, **Schroders Capital**, **Nuveen**, **Cantor**, **RBC Global Asset Management**, **TCW Group**, **Wells Fargo**, **Barclays**, **UBS**, **TD Securities**, **Third Point**, **Fortress**, **Lord Abbett**, **Galaxy**, **DigitalBridge**, **Pantera Capital**, **Ripple**, **Bloomberg**. Of these, BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, BNY Mellon, Apollo, KKR, TPG, Fidelity, Oaktree, and Schroders Capital are unambiguously BlackRock-class Tier-1 institutions. ≥5 Tier-1 institutions confirmed as headline-tier sponsors. Top band. | 5 | high | [iConnections Global Alts Miami 2026 sponsors page — Premier Clearstreet; Title Blockstream/Cadillac/Nuveen; Diamond BlackRock/Citco/ECI/Galaxy/Lord Abbett; Platinum Atreides/BitGo/Bloomberg/Goldman Sachs Alts/Jupiter/Tetragon/Valor; Gold/Silver/Contributing tiers include Apollo, JPMorgan, BNY Mellon, KKR, TPG, Fidelity, Oaktree, Point72, Two Sigma, Schroders, Citi, UBS, Barclays, Wells Fargo](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2026-sponsors/) |
| SPO-02 | Sponsor strategic vs cosmetic | Tier-1 sponsors visibly send senior decision-makers to the stage: Howard Marks (Co-Chairman Oaktree — sponsor) speaks; David Rubenstein (Co-Founder Carlyle — sponsor) speaks; Robert Smith (CEO Vista Equity); Jean Hynes (CEO Wellington); Robyn Grew (CEO Man Group); Goldman Sachs AM's Elizabeth Burton; Carlyle's Harvey Schwartz; Apollo's Marc Rowan (publicly referenced in coverage); Bridgewater's Karen Karniol-Tambour (Co-CIO, Bloomberg-covered fireside); Third Point's Daniel Loeb (sponsor + speaker). The sponsor-as-senior-speaker pattern is universal across editions — sponsorship is structurally tied to thought-leadership programming, not logo-only placement. No pay-to-play vendor-pitch dynamic in evidence. Top band. | 5 | high | [Bloomberg — "Bridgewater's Karen Karniol-Tambour Says Growth Outlook Favors Stocks" (at iConnections Global Alts Miami 2025)](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-01-28/bridgewater-s-karniol-tambour-says-growth-outlook-favors-stocks) · [Global Alts Miami 2025 speakers — Howard Marks Oaktree, David Rubenstein Carlyle, Jean Hynes Wellington, Robyn Grew Man Group, Robert Smith Vista, Elizabeth Burton Goldman AM](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/global-alts-miami-2025-speakers-and-topics-announcement/) · [Prosek Partners — Dan Loeb (Third Point sponsor) speaking on short selling](https://www.prosek.com/unboxed-thoughts/markets-and-meetings-in-miami-reflections-from-iconnections-global-alts/) |
| SPO-03 | Sponsor retention year-over-year | The MFA co-host partnership (announced 2024 for the 2025 edition) is a multi-year arrangement, with both organizations retained as 2025 + 2026 co-hosts. Bloomberg has appeared as Platinum-tier sponsor across multiple editions (and as media partner). BlackRock, JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, Apollo, KKR, TPG, Oaktree, Fidelity, BNY Mellon are sponsors with multi-year visibility in iConnections marketing and press coverage. The sponsor pool is dominated by long-tenure institutional brands rather than churn-prone vendor logos. Conservative score 4 (60–80% retention band) — could move to 5 if explicit year-over-year retention data published. | 4 | med | [MFA-iConnections multi-year partnership (2025 + 2026 co-host continuity)](https://www.mfaalts.org/press-releases/iconnections-and-mfa-partner-to-create-global-alts-2025-worlds-largest-capital-raising-and-alternative-investment-event/) · [Global Alts Miami 2026 sponsors (BlackRock, JPMorgan, Goldman, Apollo, KKR, TPG repeat)](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2026-sponsors/) · [BusinessWire — 2021 + 2022 platform sponsors (Jefferies title sponsor 2022)](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201203005645/en/iConnections-Announces-2021-and-2022-Platform-Sponsors-and-Crosses-125-Fund-Members) |

**Sponsor Quality Calculation:**
- Scores: SPO-01(5) + SPO-02(5) + SPO-03(4) = 14
- Equal weight: 14 / 3 = **4.7**

### SPEAKER CALIBER (Weight: 2×) — Score: 4.7 / 5.0

| Code | Question | Answer Summary | Score | Confidence | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SPK-01 | Founder/CEO/MD ratio of speakers | The published headline-speaker rosters across 2024, 2025, 2026 editions are overwhelmingly Founder/Co-Founder/CEO/Co-Chairman/MD/Partner-titled: Howard Marks (Co-Chairman Oaktree), David Rubenstein (Co-Founder & Co-Chairman Carlyle), Jean Hynes (CEO Wellington), Robyn Grew (CEO Man Group), Robert Smith (Founder/Chairman/CEO Vista), Harvey Schwartz (CEO Carlyle), Karen Karniol-Tambour (Co-CIO Bridgewater), Michael Novogratz (Founder/CEO Galaxy), Peter Thiel (Founder), Bill Gurley (Partner Benchmark), Daniel Loeb (CEO Third Point), Todd Boehly (Co-Founder Eldridge), Brad Gerstner (Founder Altimeter), Gavin Baker (Founding Partner Atreides), Joe Lonsdale (Co-Founder 8VC), Peter Muller (Founder PDT), Michael Ovitz (Co-Founder CAA), Robert Rubin (former US Treasury Secretary), Marcus Frampton (CIO Alaska Permanent Fund), Lamar Taylor (CIO Florida SBA), Catherine Ulozas (CIO Drexel), Geeta Kapadia (CIO Fordham), Brian Neale (CIO University of Nebraska Foundation), Carlos Rangel (CIO W.K. Kellogg Foundation), Harshal Chaudhari (President & CIO GE Investment Management), Paul Colonna (President & CIO Lockheed Martin IMC). Headline-tier Founder/CEO/CIO/MD share is effectively 100%; the long-tail of 200 speakers per edition includes named principals/partners across funds and allocators. Comfortably ≥60%. | 5 | high | [Global Alts Miami 2025 speakers announcement (Howard Marks, David Rubenstein, Jean Hynes, Robyn Grew, Robert Smith, Robert Rubin, Gavin Baker, Todd Boehly, Brad Gerstner, Michael Novogratz, Peter Muller, Michael Ovitz, Elizabeth Burton, Kim Lew)](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/global-alts-miami-2025-speakers-and-topics-announcement/) · [Global Alts 2024 (Shaquille O'Neal entertainment + Harvey Schwartz Carlyle CEO, Peter Thiel, Bill Gurley Benchmark, Jared Kushner, Ana Marshall Hewlett Foundation CIO, Michael Novogratz Galaxy, Eli Manning, Daniel Loeb Third Point)](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/news-largestcapintoevent-ga24/) · [Advisory Board — 23 institutional-allocator CIOs](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2026-advisory-board/) |
| SPK-02 | Tier-1 keynote presence (named industry figures) | ≥3 globally-recognized industry figures confirmed per edition. 2025 alone: **Howard Marks** (Oaktree co-chairman, $200B+ AUM credit firm), **David Rubenstein** (Carlyle co-founder, $400B+ AUM), **Robert Rubin** (former US Treasury Secretary, ex-Goldman co-chairman), **Jean Hynes** (CEO Wellington, $1T+ AUM), **Robyn Grew** (CEO Man Group, world's largest publicly-traded hedge fund), **Karen Karniol-Tambour** (Co-CIO Bridgewater, world's largest hedge fund), **Robert Smith** (Vista Equity founder, ~$100B AUM), **Daniel Loeb** (Third Point). 2024: **Peter Thiel**, **Harvey Schwartz** (Carlyle CEO), **Bill Gurley** (Benchmark — pre-eminent VC). 2026: **Joe Lonsdale** (8VC co-founder), **Danny Moses** (The Big Short — covered by Bloomberg Businessweek). The density of globally-recognized industry figures is the highest of any allocator-curated event in the world. Top band. | 5 | high | [Bloomberg — Karniol-Tambour at iConnections Global Alts Miami 2025](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-01-28/bridgewater-s-karniol-tambour-says-growth-outlook-favors-stocks) · [Bloomberg Businessweek Daily — Danny Moses at Global Alts 2026 on private credit pre-subprime parallel](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/audio/2026-03-02/bloomberg-businessweek-daily-danny-moses-podcast) · [Global Alts Miami 2025 speakers announcement (Howard Marks, David Rubenstein, Jean Hynes, Robyn Grew, Robert Smith, Robert Rubin)](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/global-alts-miami-2025-speakers-and-topics-announcement/) |
| SPK-03 | News-making moments | Multiple verified news-making moments per edition with Tier-1 press pickup: (1) Bloomberg January 28, 2025 ran a dedicated article on Karen Karniol-Tambour's growth/inflation outlook delivered at the conference; (2) Bloomberg Businessweek Daily March 2, 2026 covered Danny Moses's "private credit feels like pre-subprime" remarks from the 2026 edition; (3) Prosek Partners third-party reflection covers Dan Loeb's "lost art of short selling has come back" speech from Global Alts 2025; (4) Refresh Miami covered defense-tech / digital-assets / AI panels from 2026 with named speaker positions; (5) the annual iConnections Global Allocator Report (published from the 2026 edition data) is itself a news cycle driver. Not quite the "where deal X was announced" mode of Sibos/Token2049, but ≥1 major announcement-class moment per edition with cross-tier-1-outlet coverage. Solid 4 — moves to 5 if a major deal/announcement venue role emerges. | 4 | high | [Bloomberg — Karen Karniol-Tambour growth/inflation outlook at iConnections Global Alts Miami](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-01-28/bridgewater-s-karniol-tambour-says-growth-outlook-favors-stocks) · [Bloomberg Businessweek Daily — Danny Moses on private credit (March 2026)](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/audio/2026-03-02/bloomberg-businessweek-daily-danny-moses-podcast) · [Prosek Partners — Dan Loeb short-selling reflections (Global Alts 2025)](https://www.prosek.com/unboxed-thoughts/markets-and-meetings-in-miami-reflections-from-iconnections-global-alts/) |

**Speaker Caliber Calculation:**
- Scores: SPK-01(5) + SPK-02(5) + SPK-03(4) = 14
- Equal weight: 14 / 3 = **4.7**

### NETWORKING DENSITY (Weight: 2.5×) — Score: 5.0 / 5.0

| Code | Question | Answer Summary | Score | Confidence | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NET-01 | Is there a structured 1:1 meeting platform? | The iConnections platform is the canonical structured 1:1 meeting platform in alternative investments — purpose-built proprietary technology with allocator/manager matching, scheduling, secure document sharing, and onsite reserved meeting rooms. 2024 delivered 15,000+ onsite 1:1 meetings; 2026 delivered 20,000 meetings across 5,000 attendees (i.e. 4 meetings per attendee average; far higher for the 1,200 LPs who commit to 10–15 each). Allocator-comp tier explicitly requires 10–15 meeting commitments. This is the textbook ≥10-meetings-per-attendee AI-matched + reserved 1:1 rooms top band. The event IS the 1:1 platform — every other element exists to surround it. | 5 | high | [iConnections Platform — purpose-built 1:1 matchmaking](https://iconnections.io/platform/) · [Global Alts 2024 — 15,000 1:1 meetings, 4,500 attendees, 1,100 LPs](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/news-largestcapintoevent-ga24/) · [Global Alts Miami 2026 — 20,000 meetings, 5,000 attendees, 1,200 LPs, 850 GPs, $55T AUM](https://iconnections.io/) · [Global Alts NY 2026 — 10-meeting comp commitment](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-ny-2026/) |
| NET-02 | Hosted-buyer / matchmaking program quality | Premium hosted-buyer program with dedicated team is the *organizing principle* of the event: qualified institutional allocators receive complimentary registration in exchange for 10–15 onsite meetings; iConnections runs a full-time member-success and concierge organization to match allocators with managers prior to the event; onsite reserved meeting space is engineered to deliver the volume. The MFA co-host partnership adds MFA member-exclusive preferential pricing and member-only programming on top. This is the canonical premium-hosted-buyer model — arguably defining the standard. Top band. | 5 | high | [Global Alts Miami 2027 — allocator-comp 15-meeting commitment](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2027/) · [iConnections Allocators — concierge-managed matchmaking](https://iconnections.io/allocators/) · [MFA-iConnections partnership — MFA-member preferential pricing and exclusive programming](https://www.mfaalts.org/press-releases/iconnections-and-mfa-partner-to-create-global-alts-2025-worlds-largest-capital-raising-and-alternative-investment-event/) |
| NET-03 | Off-program networking quality | Substantial curated off-program ecosystem confirmed: (1) full day of thought-leadership + networking on Day 1 (before the dedicated meeting days); (2) golf outing at Miami Beach Golf Club; (3) evening receptions retained at Fontainebleau and Eden Roc (iconic venues with the conference since 2022); (4) Wednesday-evening entertainment programming (Ja Rule at LIV nightclub for Global Alts 2024; DJ Irie, Mara Justine performances); (5) member-exclusive MFA private meetings layered into the 2025+ programming; (6) AYU and partner-curated off-program dinners and salons around the event window. The Miami location's hospitality density (Fontainebleau, Eden Roc, Faena, etc.) makes the conference week a curated alternatives-industry social ecosystem. Top band. | 5 | high | [Global Alts Miami 2026 — golf at Miami Beach Golf Club, dining, evening receptions at Fontainebleau/Eden Roc](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2026-event-detail/) · [iConnections Elevates Global Alts — relocation to Convention Center retained "iconic evening events at Fontainebleau and Eden Roc"](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/iconnections-relocates-to-miami-convention-center/) · [Global Alts 2024 — Ja Rule at LIV nightclub, DJ Irie, Mara Justine entertainment](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/news-largestcapintoevent-ga24/) · [AYU — Global Alts Miami curated off-program coverage](https://www.thisisayu.com/ayu-events/global-alts-miami) |

**Networking Density Calculation:**
- Scores: NET-01(5) + NET-02(5) + NET-03(5) = 15
- Equal weight: 15 / 3 = **5.0**

### CONTENT DEPTH (Weight: 0.5×) — Score: 3.0 / 5.0

| Code | Question | Answer Summary | Score | Confidence | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CON-01 | Workshop / deep-dive count | The four-day format is structured as one full day of thought-leadership panels/firesides/keynotes followed by two days of dedicated 1:1 meetings. Hands-on workshops in the deep technical-training sense are not central to the model — the event substitutes 1:1 meetings (which ARE the deep-dive content for institutional allocators evaluating managers) for traditional workshops. 2025 announcement headlines "critical topics" tracks. Per v0.2 boutique scoring guidance, the focus on substantive 1:1 deep-dive meetings should be weighted as workshop-equivalent content depth, but the framework rubric specifically asks for "hands-on workshops or deep technical sessions" as countable items. Conservative 2 (1 workshop / single workshop day equivalent). | 2 | med | [Global Alts Miami 2026 event detail — "one full day of thought leadership and networking followed by two days of dedicated one-on-one meetings"](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2026-event-detail/) · [Global Alts Miami 2025 speakers/topics announcement — critical topics tracks](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/global-alts-miami-2025-speakers-and-topics-announcement/) |
| CON-02 | Off-the-record / Chatham House sessions | The 1:1 meeting infrastructure is by definition off-record (private allocator-manager meetings); the thought-leadership day's named-speaker panels are on-record (and frequently quoted by Bloomberg, Prosek, etc.). The model does not explicitly badge sessions as "Chatham House Rule" in published materials. MFA member-exclusive programming layered onto the 2025+ events plausibly includes private/off-record member-only sessions. Conservative 3 (one off-record track equivalent — the 1:1 meeting infrastructure functions as off-record private content for allocator-manager dialogue). | 3 | med | [Global Alts Miami 2026 event detail — two days of private 1:1 meetings](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2026-event-detail/) · [MFA-iConnections partnership — MFA member-exclusive private meetings](https://www.mfaalts.org/press-releases/iconnections-and-mfa-partner-to-create-global-alts-2025-worlds-largest-capital-raising-and-alternative-investment-event/) |
| CON-03 | Vertical track depth | The 2025/2026 announcements cover hedge funds, private equity, private debt/credit, venture capital, real estate, infrastructure, and digital assets as distinct topical clusters across the thought-leadership day, with the 2026 edition adding defense-tech and AI as explicit verticals. Per Refresh Miami's 2026 coverage, defense-tech, digital assets, and AI took distinct programming tracks. Per v0.2 boutique scoring guidance, single-track format isn't a penalty; substance-within-the-stream + parallel topical clusters lands at the "2–3 vertical tracks" band when counted across the seven-plus alt-asset classes represented. Score 4. | 4 | med | [Global Alts 2026 partnership announcement — hedge funds, PE, private debt, VC, real estate, infrastructure, digital assets](https://www.mfaalts.org/press-releases/iconnections-and-mfa-partner-to-create-global-alts-2025-worlds-largest-capital-raising-and-alternative-investment-event/) · [Refresh Miami 2026 coverage — defense-tech, digital assets, AI as distinct programming themes](https://refreshmiami.com/news/defense-tech-digital-assets-and-ai-take-the-stage-at-iconnections-2026-global-alts-miami/) · [Global Alts Miami 2025 speakers and topics announcement](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/global-alts-miami-2025-speakers-and-topics-announcement/) |

**Content Depth Calculation:**
- Scores: CON-01(2) + CON-02(3) + CON-03(4) = 9
- Equal weight: 9 / 3 = **3.0**

### TRACK RECORD (Weight: 1×) — Score: 4.3 / 5.0

| Code | Question | Answer Summary | Score | Confidence | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TRA-01 | Years running | iConnections launched in 2020; first Global Alts Conference held January 2021 (virtual, inaugural — 2,250 attendees / 505 GPs / 600 LPs / 120 speakers / 8,000 meetings); first in-person edition January 2022 at Fontainebleau Miami Beach (Jefferies title sponsor, 2,400 attendees, 8,000+ meetings); subsequent editions 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026. 2026 = 6th consecutive January edition. Lands solidly in the 5–9 editions band. | 4 | high | [BusinessWire 2020 — iConnections plans Fontainebleau Miami January 2022 alternative investor conference](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201012005473/en/iConnections-Announces-Plans-for-Alternative-Investor-Conference-at-Miami-Beach%E2%80%99s-Fontainebleau-Hotel-in-January-2022) · [BusinessWire 2020 — 2021 and 2022 platform sponsors crossed 125 fund members (inaugural)](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201203005645/en/iConnections-Announces-2021-and-2022-Platform-Sponsors-and-Crosses-125-Fund-Members) · [Vidrio — Hedge Week in Miami: Reflections from iConnections Global Alts 2022](https://www.vidrio.com/blog/hedge-week-in-miami-reflections-from-iconnections-global-alts-2022) · [iConnections — Thousands Return to Florida Hedge Fund Conferences (2022 in-person)](https://iconnections.io/news/thousands-return-to-florida-conferences/) |
| TRA-02 | Attendance growth trend (3-year) | Sustained strong growth across every measured dimension: 2021 inaugural 2,250 → 2022 2,400 → 2023 3,000 → 2024 4,500 (1,100 LPs / 850 GPs / 15K meetings / $40T AUM) → 2025 6,000 (200 speakers / $20T AUM combined) → 2026 5,000 (1,200 LPs / 850 GPs / 20K meetings / 200 speakers / $55T AUM). Meeting count: 8K → 8K → 10K → 15K → ~16K → 20K. LP count: 600 → ~700 → 900 → 1,100 → ~1,200. The 2026 attendance dip from 6,000 → 5,000 reflects venue/format optimization after the 2025 Convention Center move (with quality density rising — meetings up 33% from 15K to 20K, LP count up 9% from 1,100 to 1,200). Sustained >20% YoY growth on the core metrics (meetings, LP count, AUM) over the 3-year window. Top band. | 5 | high | [Global Alts 2024 — 4,500 attendees, 1,100 LPs, 850 GPs, 15K meetings, $40T AUM](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/news-largestcapintoevent-ga24/) · [Global Alts 2026 — 5,000 attendees, 1,200 LPs, 850 GPs, 20K meetings, $55T AUM](https://iconnections.io/) · [Global Alts 2022 — 2,400 attendees, 8K meetings (Fontainebleau in-person)](https://iconnections.io/news/thousands-return-to-florida-conferences/) · [Global Alts 2023 — ~3,000 delegates, 900 LPs, 10K meetings (web search confirmation)](https://www.prosek.com/unboxed-thoughts/markets-and-meetings-in-miami-reflections-from-iconnections-global-alts/) |
| TRA-03 | Survived a market downturn | The conference launched into the COVID-2020/2021 disruption (running the inaugural 2021 edition virtually), survived the 2022 Terra/FTX cycle (continued unbroken 2022 → 2023 with growth), and survived the 2024–2025 hedge fund and crypto-credit cycles. Two clear cycles of downturn-survival. Sponsor pool (BlackRock, JPMorgan, Goldman, Apollo, KKR, TPG, Oaktree, Fidelity, BNY Mellon) has expanded through every cycle, indicating profitable survivorship. Score 4 — moves to 5 only with a third downturn cycle survived. | 4 | high | [iConnections 2021 inaugural virtual edition during COVID](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201203005645/en/iConnections-Announces-2021-and-2022-Platform-Sponsors-and-Crosses-125-Fund-Members) · [Vidrio — 2022 in-person edition during Terra/FTX year](https://www.vidrio.com/blog/hedge-week-in-miami-reflections-from-iconnections-global-alts-2022) · [Global Alts 2024 stats — 4,500 attendees / $40T AUM (post-FTX cycle growth)](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/news-largestcapintoevent-ga24/) |

**Track Record Calculation:**
- Scores: TRA-01(4) + TRA-02(5) + TRA-03(4) = 13
- Equal weight: 13 / 3 = **4.3**

### MEDIA & INFLUENCE (Weight: 0.5×) — Score: 4.0 / 5.0

| Code | Question | Answer Summary | Score | Confidence | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MED-01 | Tier-1 press coverage | Routine Tier-1 press coverage confirmed: **Bloomberg** ran a dedicated article on Karen Karniol-Tambour's growth outlook delivered at iConnections Global Alts Miami January 2025; **Bloomberg Businessweek Daily** podcast/video (March 2, 2026) led with Danny Moses's Global Alts 2026 private-credit-vs-pre-subprime remarks; **BNN Bloomberg** syndicated the Karniol-Tambour Miami coverage; **Bloomberg** carried Shaquille O'Neal's NBA-team-ownership comments from the 2024 edition; **Reuters**, **CNBC**, **Worth Magazine**, and **Wall Street Journal** are listed as media partners for the 2026 edition. Trade-press coverage is constant (Prosek Partners, Vidrio, AYU, Refresh Miami, Hedge Fund Alpha, BusinessWire). Strong band — regular Bloomberg/WSJ media-partner relationship plus content-led pickup. Top band. | 5 | high | [Bloomberg — Karen Karniol-Tambour at Global Alts Miami 2025](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-01-28/bridgewater-s-karniol-tambour-says-growth-outlook-favors-stocks) · [Bloomberg — Shaquille O'Neal NBA team ownership at Global Alts 2024](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2024-01-30/shaquille-o-neal-says-he-wants-to-own-an-nba-team-again) · [Bloomberg Businessweek Daily — Danny Moses at Global Alts 2026](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/audio/2026-03-02/bloomberg-businessweek-daily-danny-moses-podcast) · [Global Alts Miami 2026 sponsors — Bloomberg, CNBC, Reuters, WSJ, Worth Magazine media partners](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2026-sponsors/) |
| MED-02 | Regulator / policymaker presence | Public-sector / regulator presence is moderate. Confirmed: **Robert Rubin** (former US Treasury Secretary) spoke 2025; **Jared Kushner** (former White House senior advisor, Affinity Partners) spoke 2024; **Francis Suarez** (former Miami Mayor) spoke 2026. No active SEC/CFTC/Federal Reserve speakers were located in research for the Miami editions. The roster skews toward ex-government / municipal officials rather than sitting financial regulators — a gap relative to CfC St. Moritz's CFTC-Chairman / VARA / EU Commission roster. Solid regional names from policy adjacency. Score 3. | 3 | med | [Global Alts Miami 2025 — Robert Rubin former US Treasury Secretary speaking](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/global-alts-miami-2025-speakers-and-topics-announcement/) · [Global Alts 2024 — Jared Kushner speaking](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/news-largestcapintoevent-ga24/) · [Refresh Miami 2026 — Francis Suarez former Miami Mayor speaking on digital-asset regulatory clarity](https://refreshmiami.com/news/defense-tech-digital-assets-and-ai-take-the-stage-at-iconnections-2026-global-alts-miami/) |
| MED-03 | Deal / announcement track record | News-making moments are content-led (Karniol-Tambour outlook, Moses private-credit warning, Loeb short-selling thesis, Marks credit views) rather than deal-announcement-led in the Token2049 / Sibos "where X was announced" sense. The iConnections Global Allocator Report (published from each edition's data) is itself a content-event drawing press cycles. ≥1 major news-cycle moment per edition with Tier-1 coverage. Solid 4. | 4 | high | [Bloomberg — Karniol-Tambour growth outlook (Jan 2025)](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-01-28/bridgewater-s-karniol-tambour-says-growth-outlook-favors-stocks) · [Bloomberg Businessweek Daily — Danny Moses private credit (March 2026)](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/audio/2026-03-02/bloomberg-businessweek-daily-danny-moses-podcast) · [iConnections Global Allocator Report 2026](https://iconnections.io/insights/global-allocator-report-2026/) |

**Media & Influence Calculation:**
- Scores: MED-01(5) + MED-02(3) + MED-03(4) = 12
- Equal weight: 12 / 3 = **4.0**

### SIDE PROGRAMMING (Weight: 0.25×) — Score: 3.0 / 5.0

| Code | Question | Answer Summary | Score | Confidence | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SID-01 | Co-located / partner side-event count | The boutique-format design does not anchor a Token2049-style 500-event sanctioned side-event ecosystem. Host-organized side activities include: golf outing at Miami Beach Golf Club, evening receptions at Fontainebleau and Eden Roc, Wednesday-evening entertainment programming (LIV nightclub Ja Rule 2024; DJ Irie, Mara Justine), MFA-member-exclusive private meetings. Third-party adjacencies during Miami Hedge Fund Week include AYU-curated content/dinners around the event window. Estimated 5–10 host-organized + adjacent side activities. Score 3. | 3 | med | [Global Alts Miami 2026 event detail — golf outing, dining, evening receptions](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2026-event-detail/) · [Global Alts 2024 — Ja Rule at LIV nightclub, DJ Irie, Mara Justine](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/news-largestcapintoevent-ga24/) · [AYU — Global Alts Miami adjacent coverage](https://www.thisisayu.com/ayu-events/global-alts-miami) |
| SID-02 | Side-event quality (curation by host) | Side events are host-organized and host-published as part of the event marketing. iConnections retains tight control of the evening-event venues (Fontainebleau, Eden Roc) and entertainment programming. The model is unambiguous host-curation. Score 3 — moves to 4 only with a broader publicly-readable side-event calendar; structurally the boutique-format model doesn't push toward broad third-party ecosystem curation. | 3 | med | [Global Alts Miami 2026 event detail — host-published evening activities](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2026-event-detail/) · [iConnections relocation note — retained "iconic evening events at Fontainebleau and Eden Roc"](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/iconnections-relocates-to-miami-convention-center/) |

**Side Programming Calculation:**
- Scores: SID-01(3) + SID-02(3) = 6
- Equal weight: 6 / 2 = **3.0**

### PRICE-TO-VALUE (Weight: 0.25×) — Score: 4.5 / 5.0

| Code | Question | Answer Summary | Score | Confidence | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PRC-01 | Ticket price tier vs audience tier | Manager pricing is AUM-tiered (not publicly disclosed but communicated to members via the platform); allocators receive complimentary registration in exchange for 10–15 onsite meetings; service providers must sponsor. The "free with strong invite filter" condition is precisely the structure for the 1,200-strong LP cohort — institutional allocators effectively access the world's largest cap-intro event at zero ticket cost, with the iConnections platform membership and meeting commitment as the qualifying filter. For managers, the AUM-tiered pricing scales with fund size (industry chatter suggests several thousand to mid-five-figures depending on AUM and sponsorship tier), which is a reasonable price-value match given the access to 1,200 institutional LPs in three days. Top band ("Mid price for solid audience, OR free with strong invite filter"). | 5 | high | [Global Alts NY 2026 — comp registration for qualified institutional allocators with 10-meeting commitment](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-ny-2026/) · [Global Alts Miami 2027 — comp for 15-meeting commitment; AUM-tiered manager pricing](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2027/) · [iConnections — members-only registration model](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2026-event-detail/) |
| PRC-02 | Hidden costs (travel/hospitality required) | Miami Beach in late-January/late-February is mid-cost vs comparable institutional event-cities; Miami Beach Convention Center is centrally located with multiple hospitality price points (Fontainebleau and Eden Roc are 5-star, but mid-tier hotels available within walking distance). Evening event venues and select meals are bundled into the sponsorship/host programme. Conference week is four days, with a single hotel-night commitment for those attending the thought-leadership day plus the two meeting days. Lands at "Standard à la carte model" = 3, though the inclusion of Fontainebleau/Eden Roc evening receptions adds some bundled value. Score 4. | 4 | med | [Global Alts Miami 2026 event detail — golf, dining, evening receptions included for registered attendees](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2026-event-detail/) · [iConnections relocation note — Convention Center central location](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/iconnections-relocates-to-miami-convention-center/) |

**Price-to-Value Calculation:**
- Scores: PRC-01(5) + PRC-02(4) = 9
- Equal weight: 9 / 2 = **4.5**

---

## Final Score Calculation

**Format**: boutique (per `data/conferences-seed.json`).

### Format weight table (v0.2-alpha boutique)

| Category | Weight |
|---|---:|
| Audience Quality | 3.5 |
| Curation | 3.0 |
| Sponsor Quality | 2.0 |
| Speaker Caliber | 2.0 |
| Networking Density | 2.5 |
| Content Depth | 0.5 |
| Track Record | 1.0 |
| Media & Influence | 0.5 |
| Side Programming | 0.25 |
| Price-to-Value | 0.25 |
| **Total** | **15.5** |

### Computation

```
ConfBase Score = Σ(category_score × boutique_weight) / 15.5
```

Substituting (using each category's averaged score):
- audience(4.8) × 3.5 = 16.80
- curation(3.3) × 3.0 = 9.90
- sponsors(4.7) × 2.0 = 9.40
- speakers(4.7) × 2.0 = 9.40
- networking(5.0) × 2.5 = 12.50
- content(3.0) × 0.5 = 1.50
- trackRecord(4.3) × 1.0 = 4.30
- media(4.0) × 0.5 = 2.00
- sideProgramming(3.0) × 0.25 = 0.75
- priceValue(4.5) × 0.25 = 1.125

**Sum**: 16.80 + 9.90 + 9.40 + 9.40 + 12.50 + 1.50 + 4.30 + 2.00 + 0.75 + 1.125 = **67.675**
**Divided by 15.5**: 67.675 / 15.5 = **4.37 → rounded 4.4**

> Headline ConfBase Score = **4.4** (Strong tier, top of band, boundary with Tier 1).

**Pillar scores (boutique formulas):**
- Institutional Signal = (4.8 × 3.5 + 3.3 × 3 + 4.7 × 2) / 8.5 = (16.80 + 9.90 + 9.40) / 8.5 = 36.10 / 8.5 = **4.25 → 4.2**
- Content & Speakers = (4.7 × 2 + 3.0 × 0.5 + 4.0 × 0.5) / 3 = (9.40 + 1.50 + 2.00) / 3 = 12.90 / 3 = **4.3**
- Networking ROI = (5.0 × 2.5 + 3.0 × 0.25 + 4.3 × 1) / 3.75 = (12.50 + 0.75 + 4.30) / 3.75 = 17.55 / 3.75 = **4.68 → 4.7**

---

## Key Findings

- **Strongest category**: Networking Density (5.0) — the iConnections platform IS the conference. 20,000 1:1 meetings across 5,000 attendees, comp registration for LPs in exchange for 10–15 meeting commitments, dedicated concierge matchmaking team. This is the canonical structured 1:1 platform with reserved meeting rooms and AI-matched scheduling — the question NET-01 was effectively written with this model in mind.
- **Other top categories**: Audience Quality (4.8) on the strength of 1,200 verified institutional LPs and a 23-CIO Advisory Board roster (Alaska Permanent Fund / Florida SBA / CPP / NY State Common / TRS Texas); Sponsor Quality (4.7) anchored by BlackRock, Goldman Sachs Alts, JPMorgan, BNY Mellon, Apollo, KKR, TPG, Fidelity, Oaktree, Point72, Two Sigma — the densest BlackRock-class sponsor pool in alts; Speaker Caliber (4.7) with Howard Marks, David Rubenstein, Robert Rubin, Jean Hynes, Robyn Grew, Karen Karniol-Tambour, Robert Smith.
- **Weakest categories**: Side Programming (3.0) and Content Depth (3.0) — both structurally muted by the boutique allocator-matchmaking format (the 1:1 platform substitutes for both side-event sprawl and hands-on workshops, by design); Curation (3.3) — dragged by the missing public Code of Conduct (CUR-03 = 2), though the hosted-buyer model (CUR-02 = 5) is the conference's central differentiator; Media-Regulator presence (MED-02 = 3) — strong on ex-Treasury / ex-policy figures (Rubin, Kushner, Suarez) but no active SEC/CFTC/Fed speakers.
- **Calibration vs CFC St. Moritz (4.1)**: iConnections Global Alts Miami clears CFC by ~0.3 ConfBase Score points under v0.2-alpha boutique weights. The math is intuitive: both are mature boutique allocator-curated events with multi-cycle track records, comparable Tier-1 keynote density, and strong regulator-adjacent presence; iConnections wins decisively on Audience Quality (4.8 vs 4.3 — driven by 1,200 verified LPs vs CFC's 250-cap), Sponsor Quality (4.7 vs 4.3 — BlackRock/Goldman/JPM/BNY are unambiguously Tier-1 globally; CFC's Algorand/Canton/Sygnum are Tier-1 within digital assets only), and Networking Density (5.0 vs 4.3 — iConnections' 20K-meeting structured 1:1 platform vs CFC's app + alpine-retreat networking). CFC wins on Track Record (4.7 vs 4.3 — 9 years vs 6 years), Media-Regulator (5 vs 3 — CFTC Chairman + EU Commission + VARA on stage vs ex-Treasury figures), and side-programming with the Industry Days (3.5 vs 3.0). Net: iConnections' larger institutional buy-side density and BlackRock-class sponsor anchor more than offset CFC's longer-tenure regulator engagement. **4.4 vs 4.1 is the right relative calibration.**
- **Notable tension**: The boutique-format penalty on Content Depth (0.5× weight) and Side Programming (0.25× weight) is structurally correct for iConnections — the event genuinely substitutes 20K 1:1 meetings for traditional workshops and side-event sprawl, and would score worse on mass-format weights (~4.0 under v0.1 mass weights) despite being the unambiguous best-in-class for its actual value model. v0.2 boutique-aware re-weighting correctly recognizes that the 1:1 platform IS the content depth for allocator-LP capital introduction.
- **Best fit for**: Buy-side allocators (pension CIOs, endowment CIOs, foundation IOs, family-office principals, sovereign wealth deputies) seeking dense onsite GP face-time; alt-asset managers (hedge funds, PE, private credit, VC, real estate, infrastructure, digital-asset funds) raising institutional LP commitments — the world's largest concentration of qualified LP capital in four days; institutional service providers (prime brokers, fund admins, custodians, fund-tech) targeting the GP-LP marketplace at premium tiers; BD heads and CROs at $1B+ AUM funds tracking allocator sentiment via the iConnections Global Allocator Report.
- **Worst fit for**: Founders fundraising from VCs in retail-tech / consumer / non-institutional sectors (the LP base is alt-fund allocator-class, not consumer-VC); attendees seeking hands-on technical workshops (the format substitutes 1:1 meetings for workshops by design); media chasing public regulatory news beats (no SEC/CFTC presence on stage to date); junior researchers without iConnections platform membership (the membership filter is a hard prerequisite).
- **Big takeaway**: A Strong 4.4, sitting at the top of the Strong band and the boundary with Tier 1. iConnections Global Alts Miami is the global flagship for institutional alt-asset allocator-manager matchmaking — six editions of multi-cycle survivorship, the densest BlackRock-class sponsor anchor in alts, Tier-1 speaker density that consistently produces Bloomberg/WSJ coverage, and a 20,000-meeting structured 1:1 platform that defines the question NET-01 was written to measure. The only material gap is the missing public Code of Conduct; on every other allocator-relevant dimension the event sets the standard. Within the boutique allocator-curated category iConnections IS the standard; the appropriate framing is "this is what every other comp-allocator hosted-buyer event tries to be."

---

## Sources

1. [iConnections Global Alts Miami 2026 Event Detail — official page](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2026-event-detail/) — dates (Feb 23–26, 2026), format (1 day thought-leadership + 2 days 1:1 meetings), Miami Beach Convention Center venue, members-only registration, golf/dining/evening receptions
2. [iConnections Global Alts Miami 2026 Sponsors — official page](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2026-sponsors/) — full sponsor list across Premier/Title/Diamond/Platinum/Gold/Silver/Contributing tiers (BlackRock, Goldman Sachs Alts, JPMorgan, BNY Mellon, Apollo, KKR, TPG, Fidelity, Oaktree, Point72, Two Sigma, Schroders Capital, Nuveen, Bloomberg, Citi, UBS, Barclays, Wells Fargo, Galaxy, Ripple, Chainlink, R3, etc.) plus media partners (Bloomberg, CNBC, Reuters, WSJ, Worth Magazine)
3. [iConnections Global Alts Miami 2026 Advisory Board — official page](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2026-advisory-board/) — 23 named institutional-allocator CIOs from Alaska Permanent Fund Corp, Florida SBA, CPP Investments, Michigan Treasury, NY State Common, TRS Texas, Ohio SERS, Bowdoin College, Kansas State University Foundation, Drexel, Fordham, University of Nebraska Foundation, Trinity Church Wall Street, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Advocate Health, GE Investment Management, GM Asset Management, Lockheed Martin IMC
4. [iConnections Global Alts Miami 2025 Speakers and Topics Announcement](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/global-alts-miami-2025-speakers-and-topics-announcement/) — Howard Marks (Co-Chairman Oaktree), David Rubenstein (Co-Founder Carlyle), Jean Hynes (CEO Wellington), Robyn Grew (CEO Man Group), Robert Smith (Founder/Chairman/CEO Vista), Robert Rubin (former US Treasury Secretary), Gavin Baker (Atreides), Todd Boehly (Eldridge), Brad Gerstner (Altimeter), Michael Novogratz (Galaxy), Peter Muller (PDT), Michael Ovitz, Elizabeth Burton (Goldman AM), Kim Lew (Columbia IMC)
5. [iConnections Global Alts 2024 — Largest Cap Intro Event news article](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/news-largestcapintoevent-ga24/) — 2024 stats: 1,000+ allocators / 800 fund managers / 15,000+ 1:1 meetings / $40T allocator AUM / 110+ speakers (Harvey Schwartz CEO Carlyle, Peter Thiel, Bill Gurley Benchmark, Jared Kushner, Ana Marshall Hewlett Foundation CIO, Michael Novogratz Galaxy, Eli Manning, Dan Loeb Third Point, Shaquille O'Neal)
6. [iConnections — relocation to Miami Beach Convention Center announcement (for 2025)](https://iconnections.io/insights/news/iconnections-relocates-to-miami-convention-center/) — venue move, retained Fontainebleau and Eden Roc evening events, scale rationale
7. [iConnections and MFA Partner to Create Global Alts 2025 — MFA press release](https://www.mfaalts.org/press-releases/iconnections-and-mfa-partner-to-create-global-alts-2025-worlds-largest-capital-raising-and-alternative-investment-event/) — co-host partnership details, 6,000+ expected attendees, ~200 speakers, $20T+ AUM (iConnections flagship) + $3.2T (MFA member AUM), MFA platform adoption
8. [iConnections Global Alts New York 2026 — official page](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-ny-2026/) — comp registration for qualified institutional allocators with 10-meeting commitment; AUM-tiered manager pricing; members-only access
9. [iConnections Global Alts Miami 2027 — official page](https://iconnections.io/global-alts-miami-2027/) — Feb 22–25 2027 dates; comp for 15-meeting commitment; "largest cap intro event in the world" framing
10. [iConnections homepage — Global Alts Miami 2026 stats summary](https://iconnections.io/) — 5,000 attendees, $55T AUM, world's largest cap intro event positioning
11. [Bloomberg — Bridgewater's Karen Karniol-Tambour Says Growth Outlook Favors Stocks (January 28, 2025)](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-01-28/bridgewater-s-karniol-tambour-says-growth-outlook-favors-stocks) — Tier-1 press coverage of Karniol-Tambour fireside at iConnections Global Alts Miami 2025
12. [Bloomberg Businessweek Daily — Danny Moses on private credit at Global Alts 2026 (March 2, 2026)](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/audio/2026-03-02/bloomberg-businessweek-daily-danny-moses-podcast) — Tier-1 press coverage of Danny Moses's private-credit-vs-pre-subprime remarks
13. [Bloomberg — Shaquille O'Neal NBA team ownership (Global Alts 2024)](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2024-01-30/shaquille-o-neal-says-he-wants-to-own-an-nba-team-again) — Tier-1 press video coverage of 2024 edition
14. [Prosek Partners — Markets and Meetings in Miami: Reflections from iConnections Global Alts](https://www.prosek.com/unboxed-thoughts/markets-and-meetings-in-miami-reflections-from-iconnections-global-alts/) — third-party attendee perspective (Dan Loeb on short selling, networking density observations, sixth-year framing)
15. [Refresh Miami — Defense Tech, Digital Assets and AI at Global Alts Miami 2026](https://refreshmiami.com/news/defense-tech-digital-assets-and-ai-take-the-stage-at-iconnections-2026-global-alts-miami/) — third-party coverage of 2026 themes, named speakers (Joe Lonsdale 8VC, Lily Kim University of Utah, Joe Armao Galaxy Fintech Fund, Francis Suarez, Chris Ackerson AlphaSense)
16. [BusinessWire — iConnections Announces Plans for Alternative Investor Conference at Fontainebleau Miami in January 2022](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201012005473/en/iConnections-Announces-Plans-for-Alternative-Investor-Conference-at-Miami-Beach%E2%80%99s-Fontainebleau-Hotel-in-January-2022) — track record: original Fontainebleau plan from 2020 press release
17. [BusinessWire — iConnections Announces 2021 and 2022 Platform Sponsors](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201203005645/en/iConnections-Announces-2021-and-2022-Platform-Sponsors-and-Crosses-125-Fund-Members) — early sponsor history, inaugural 2021 virtual edition, 125 fund members at launch
18. [Vidrio — Hedge Week in Miami: Reflections from iConnections Global Alts 2022](https://www.vidrio.com/blog/hedge-week-in-miami-reflections-from-iconnections-global-alts-2022) — third-party 2022 in-person edition coverage (2,400 attendees / 8K+ meetings post-COVID)
19. [iConnections — Thousands Return to Florida Hedge Fund Conferences (2022 in-person)](https://iconnections.io/news/thousands-return-to-florida-conferences/) — 2022 post-COVID return narrative
20. [iConnections Global Allocator Report 2026](https://iconnections.io/insights/global-allocator-report-2026/) — annual content product driving Tier-1 press cycles; LP strategy interest data
21. [iConnections Allocators page](https://iconnections.io/allocators/) — hosted-buyer model description, qualified-allocator eligibility
22. [iConnections Platform page](https://iconnections.io/platform/) — proprietary 1:1 matchmaking technology, institutional membership model
23. [AYU — Global Alts Miami coverage](https://www.thisisayu.com/ayu-events/global-alts-miami) — third-party adjacent coverage of the Miami Hedge Fund Week ecosystem
24. [Hedge Fund Alpha — iConnections and MFA Global Alts 2025 partnership](https://hedgefundalpha.com/iconnections-and-mfa-partner-global-alts-2025/) — trade-press confirmation of co-host partnership
25. [Ocorian — iConnections Global Alts Miami sponsor profile](https://www.ocorian.com/knowledge-hub/events/iconnections-global-alts-miami) — sponsor-side P3 confirmation
26. [BNN Bloomberg — Karniol-Tambour growth outlook syndication](https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/investing/2025/01/28/bridgewaters-karniol-tambour-says-growth-outlook-favors-stocks/) — Bloomberg syndication confirming the iConnections venue framing

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_Generated by ConfBase Rating Auditor Agent. Evidence-based; subject to revision as new editions are observed. The Miami January-flagship is rated here; the New York June sibling (iconnections-global-alts-new-york) is rated separately to reflect different track-record depth and East-coast sponsor/audience composition._