Fairview Capital, A Black-Owned, Billion Dollar Investment Company, Celebrates 30 Years

Founded in September of 1994, Price and Morse grew capital for the company through co-investments, venture capitalists, and diverse and emerging managers.

Fairview Capital Partners is a Black-owned billion-dollar investment company celebrating 30 years of service. Founded by Laurence Morse and JoAnn Price in September 1994, it has had $10 billion under management since its inception. Price and Morse grew the company’s capital through co-investments, venture capitalists, and diverse and emerging managers.

“I continue to be a bit astonished by the fact that 30 years have passed since JoAnn and I co-founded Fairview, and, on occasion, I marvel at the things we have managed to accomplish as a firm,” Morse said during Fairview’s 30^th Anniversary Dinner in New York City on Sept. 26. “As we pass the torch to the next generation of extraordinary Fairview leaders, the opportunities the firm faces are unlimited.”

Fairview started thanks to a vision from Price, who asked Morse to partner with her in her vision. For the first two years, Morse and Price crisscrossed the country, working to primarily secure public pension funds, as reported in Pensions and Investments.

“We had to be comfortable with getting mostly nos or, ‘that sounds good, but we don’t think you can succeed in something like this,’” said Price. Morse adds, “We simply knew that in time, we would succeed. The only question was whether we could stay alive long enough to realize that success.”

Three decades later, the company went from two people to 25 on staff. It has survived economic crises, a pandemic, and the racial reckoning that followed the deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, and Breonna Taylor in 2020. It was a time when Morse reiterated the company’s value as always being a firm that’s “open door to everyone.”

“We have always been comfortable in speaking clearly about who we are, what we do, and how we have done that successfully,” Price added. “And that is very important for firms like ours to do.”

The Future of Fairview Capital Partners

According to a study by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, people from historically underrepresented communities manage only 1.4% of the more than $82 trillion asset management industry, despite diverse-owned firms’ investment performance matching those of their less-diverse peers.

Fairview has defied the odds over the years, hitting various milestones, including receiving commitments from pension funds, including $3.7 billion City of Dallas Employees’ Retirement Fund, more than $267 billion from New York State Common Retirement Fund, and securing the New Jersey Division of Investments.

The firm is already looking ahead to the next 30 years.

“As we enter the next three decades, I’m excited to build upon our strong 30-year legacy,” Managing Partner Kola Olofinboba tells Black Enterprise. “Our goal is to continue growing our inclusive community of talent, internal and external to the firm, as we invest in the leading companies that will shape the future of our world while generating superior returns for our investors and their stakeholders.”

Price adds, “As we look ahead, I am filled with boundless hope and excitement that this vision will endure. We will continue to break barriers, uplift underrepresented voices, and create opportunities that empower the next generation of leaders in our industry and communities.”