Investing for the Crisis to Come: The Role of Alternatives

Mark Taucar, CFA, and Nicolas Johnson, FDFS™, will take the stage at the 2026 Acuity Conference for Distinguished Advisors with a new take on Alternatives: Investing for the Crisis to Come. Their November 23 session will explore how alternative investments can provide diversification, generate higher yields and enhance capital growth when traditional markets face volatility and disruption. For these reasons, we are pleased to welcome Platinum Sponsor Accilent Capital Management and Pavilion Flow Through Fund and innovative thought leaders Mark and Nicolas to DAC. Check out the critical issues:

Alternative investments—including private equity, precious metals, flow-through investments and real estate—often perform differently than public markets. They can provide the “zag” when stocks “zig,” helping to lower overall portfolio volatility and provide another source of growth and income. In inflationary environments, alternatives can also outperform traditional 60/40 portfolios.

That potential is particularly relevant as investors confront a changing economic and investment environment. The session follows discussions at Acuity about global economic uncertainty, geopolitical disruption, deficit spending, potentially higher taxation and the impact of AI and demographic change—all factors that are challenging advisors to think carefully about how client portfolios are positioned for resilience.

But Alternatives Aren’t for Everyone

The benefits of alternatives need to be weighed against an important reality: these investments are not always well understood by clients, and they are not appropriate for everyone.

That makes the advisor conversation critical. Rather than adding alternatives simply in response to market uncertainty, advisors need to be intentional about discussing where they may fit within a client’s overall portfolio, objectives and circumstances.

Taucar and Johnson will explore these opportunities and help advisors think differently about diversification beyond traditional public markets. The goal: better understand the potential role of alternatives and have more informed conversations with clients about whether these investments belong in their portfolios.

Alternatives: Investing for the Crisis to Come takes place November 23 at the 2026 Acuity Conference for Distinguished Advisors in Victoria, B.C., proudly supported by Platinum Sponsor Accilent Capital Management and Pavilion Flow Through Fund.

The conference runs November 22–24 and brings together advisors and thought leaders from across Canada for education in wealth management, portfolio management, tax, retirement and estate planning, succession and practice management. Register by September 30 for early-bird tuition savings!

About the Sponsor

Accilent Capital Management is a boutique investment firm focused on saving taxes, protecting capital, and generating wealth for our clients.

We offer a range of investment funds and strategies for individuals and organizations at any stage of their financial journey:

• Accilent Select: Professional outsourcing platform for the financial industry offering active, tactical portfolio and pension management. “Your clients. Your relationships. Our expertise.”
• Pavilion Flow-Through Fund: Significant tax savings and potential upside for individual investors through the Canadian government’s Flow-Through Share tax-incentive program.

Accilent was founded in 2002 in Toronto. Today our portfolio teams have 50+ years of combined experience in institutional and private capital.