Fair valuation pricing survey, 17th edition, executive summary Aligning technology, risk management, and opportunity in the valuation process Deloitte is a global leader providing audit, tax, and a broad range of advisory and consulting ser- vices to mutual fund firms. With an unending focus on fair valuation across the industry by regulators, mutual fund boards and investment advisers, valuation trends, developments, and leading practices continue to be of critical importance in managing valuation risks. The peer and industry information and valuation insights provided by Deloittes annual Fair Valuation Pricing Survey are unique and valuable to your business, your operations, and to your fund board. For more information, read about our Fair Valuation Pricing Survey on Deloitte. Deloittes 17th annual Fair Valuation Pricing Survey aggregates the views of 86 mutual fund firms. The population of FV survey participants represents a diverse mix of US-based mutual fund firms encompassing various sizes, asset classes, and geographies. The FV survey took place between May and July 2019.Contents Introduction 2 Slow adoption of technology provides for future opportunities 3 Connecting the dots: Liquidity and valuation 6 Private equity continues to impact mutual fund portfolios 8 Board governance hitting on all cylinders 10 Other FV survey highlights 12 Looking ahead 13 Endnotes 162 Introduction T HE 17TH ANNUAL Deloitte Fair Valuation Pricing Survey (FV survey) revealed an indus- try that is evolving on a variety of valuation- related topics, including valuation policies and pro- cedures, both general and specific to various types of investments, as well as valuation governance, use of technology, internal controls, and valuation risk management. Throughout the FV survey, the following emerging and maturing industry trends are discussed: Investment companies are continuing to explore the use of technology in the valuation process. However, they have not widely adopted advanced technologies such as robotics process automation and artificial intelligence in the val- uation process, as technological gains have generally been limited to more basic use cases. We believe that additional gains exist in untapped places. The formation of liquidity committees is refo- cusing attention on the connection between valuation and liquidity. Understanding how to capture and share information relevant for the daily undertakings of those in the front office, liquidity risk management, and the valuation function may be the next step. Private equity securities continue to be a large part of mutual fund holdings, with 59 percent of survey participants indicating that they hold private equities. Opportunities to standardize the valuation model process and enhance the control environment may free up the board agenda and management time. Valuation governance trends continue to focus on upfront risk discussions with management, proactive inquiry and reaction to real-time valu- ation events, and the streamlining and automation of valuation board reporting. Fair valuation pricing survey, 17th edition, executive summary