# Effective Assets

Effective Assets is a RIA based in Berkeley, United States.

## Overview

- **Organization type:** RIA
- **Headquarters:** Berkeley, United States
- **Region:** North America
- **Address:** Berkeley, CA, United States
- **Founded:** 2021
- **Assets under management:** Undisclosed
- **Website:** https://effectiveassets.com/
- **LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/justinmartello

## Regulatory record

- **CRD number:** 285744
- **SEC file number:** 801-120391
- **Registration status:** Registered
- **Reports private funds:** No
- **IAPD record:** https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/285744

## About

Effective Assets is an SEC-registered investment adviser in Berkeley, CA, registered since 2021. The firm manages $165 million in assets, $160 million on a discretionary basis. It has 2 employees and 1 investment adviser.

## Sectors

- Secondaries & Special Situations
- Private Credit
- Hedge Funds

## People

- John S. Osterweis — Principal

## Questions

### How was John Osterweis's wealth originally generated?

John Osterweis built his wealth through Osterweis Capital Management, the San Francisco-based investment advisory firm he founded in 1983. The firm managed mutual funds — notably the Osterweis Strategic Income Fund — and separate accounts for high-net-worth individuals. Osterweis sold the firm in 2017, using the proceeds to fund the activities of Effective Assets. The original firm continues to operate independently.

### What is the investment strategy of Effective Assets?

The firm buys illiquid secondary stakes that sellers are compelled to unload. This includes hedge-fund side pockets, defunct fund liquidation trusts, tail-end private-equity positions, and sub-performing private credit. Osterweis acts as a liquidity provider, purchasing assets at a discount to their ultimate recovery value by stepping into trades that institutional funds cannot or will not hold. The strategy relies on deep legal and financial analysis of distressed fund structures.

### What asset classes does Effective Assets target?

The firm targets three main areas: hedge fund side pockets and liquidation trusts, private credit and distressed debt positions in sub-performing or defaulted loan portfolios, and tail-end private equity stakes. The common thread is forced or motivated selling — sellers include fund-of-funds wrapping up, family offices cleaning up vintage baggage, and trustees discharging legacy liabilities. The firm avoids control-oriented private equity and does not make venture-capital commitments.

### How does Effective Assets differ from a typical secondary fund?

Unlike a commingled secondary fund, Effective Assets deploys permanent, single-principal capital with no redemption pressure or fund-life constraints. It focuses on smaller, deeply complex positions — often below $5 million in net asset value — that traditional secondary funds find administratively intensive and sub-scale. The firm's legal and operational due-diligence capacity is built for unwinding intricate fund structures rather than purchasing diversified LP portfolios.

## Related profiles

- [EFA Wealth Management](https://altss.com/profile/efa-wealth-management)
- [Efficient Capital Strategies](https://altss.com/profile/efficient-capital-strategies)

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Last updated: 2026-07-06T01:24:15.808Z

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