XA Investments (XAI) is set to bring a $91m closed-end tender offer fund from Evanston Capital Management into its fund platform, further expanding its lineup of alternative investment vehicles aimed at wealth management channels, according to a report by CityWire.
Subject to regulatory approval, the Evanston Multi-Alpha fund will transition into the XAI fund complex in the third quarter, with XA Investments taking over as adviser while Evanston remains involved as sub-adviser. The fund is currently overseen by Evanston CEO and co-CIO Adam Blitz alongside co-CIO Kristen VanGelder.
The move follows a period of adviser transition for the strategy, which was previously supported by North Square Investments until earlier this year. Once integrated, XAI plans to convert the vehicle into a daily net asset value (NAV) interval fund in the first half of 2027, enhancing liquidity terms and broadening access for financial advisers and private wealth investors.
The addition will bring XA Investments’ platform to four funds, marking continued expansion of its alternative investment suite. The firm previously absorbed the XAI Madison Equity Premium Income fund from Madison Investments in late 2024, reflecting a broader strategy of consolidating and scaling closed-end and interval fund structures.
XA Investments president Kim Flynn said the partnership with Evanston reflects growing demand from advisers for institutional-quality hedge fund strategies delivered through more accessible fund structures. She highlighted Evanston’s long track record in multi-strategy hedge fund investing, spanning nearly 25 years, as a key factor in the collaboration.
Evanston Multi-Alpha, originally launched in 2014, operates as a fund-of-funds allocating capital across underlying hedge fund managers with the objective of delivering long-term risk-adjusted returns. The strategy provides quarterly liquidity, subject to gating provisions of 5% to 25% of outstanding shares, and carries a 1% management fee with no performance fee, though certain share classes include distribution-related charges.
As of early April, the portfolio was diversified across 21 underlying managers, with allocations split across long-short equity (42%), event-driven (25%), global macro and asset allocation (25%), and relative value strategies (8%). The fund also held a small cash position of around 3%.
Geographically, exposure is weighted toward the US (59%), followed by Europe (21%), developed Asia including Japan (11%), and emerging markets (9%).
Performance data shows the fund delivered returns of 13% for institutional share classes and 12.2% for retail share classes over the three years to the end of March, outperforming the broader multi-manager hedge fund space as measured by the HFRI Fund-of-Funds Composite Index, which returned 8.5% over the same period.
The planned conversion to an interval fund reflects a broader industry trend toward evergreen structures that offer periodic liquidity while maintaining exposure to hedge fund strategies, particularly as demand from financial advisers for alternatives continues to rebuild.
