Kelp Global · Private markets
Truenorth Investor Portal
An investor portal for a private-equity fund manager, built on Kelp: fund documents, portfolio companies and the annual meeting recordings in one place for its investors.
Overview
Everything an investor needs, in one place
Investors in a private-equity fund expect regular, well-organised information: reports and notices, tax and compliance documents, valuation reports, the companies each fund has invested in, and the annual meeting. The Truenorth investor portal brings all of it together behind a single sign-in.
We designed the portal around the investor's questions: what do I hold, what has been shared with me, and what did the annual meeting cover. Funds, transactions, shared documents and the annual meeting each have a clear place in one navigation.
- Users
- Fund investors (limited partners)
- Tools
- Figma, Prototyping
Problem statement
How might we give a fund's investors a calm, trustworthy place to find every document, see every portfolio company and catch up on the annual meeting, without emailing the investor-relations team?
Empathize
Who we designed for
Fund investors, often senior people at institutions and family offices, visit the portal occasionally and with a specific question. They need to find the answer quickly and trust what they see.
Limited partners
Want reports, notices and statements for the funds they have committed to, and a view of the portfolio.
Investors who missed the meeting
Want to watch the annual meeting, jump to the session that matters to them and know who is speaking.
The fund's investor-relations team
Wants investors to self-serve instead of answering the same requests by email.
Pain points
Fund documents arrived as scattered emails and attachments that were hard to find later.
Investors across several funds had no single view of their commitments.
Annual meeting content was long and hard to navigate after the event.
Every 'can you resend…' request cost the investor-relations team time.
The challenge
Trust, clarity and occasional visits
Infrequent, high-stakes visits
Investors do not use the portal daily, so it has to be obvious where everything is, every time.
Many document types
Reports, notices, tax, financial statements, valuation reports and compliance documents each need a clear home.
Long-form media
An annual meeting runs for hours. Investors need to find the session and speaker they care about.
Our approach
How we approached it
- Phase 01
Start from the investor's questions
We organised the portal around what investors come to find: an executive summary, their funds, transactions, shared documents and the annual meeting.
Each became a top-level item in a single sidebar.
- Phase 02
Give documents a structure
Shared documents were grouped by type, reports, notices, tax, financial statements, valuation reports, compliance and others, so investors browse by what they need rather than by date.
- Phase 03
Make the meeting navigable
The annual meeting page pairs the video with an agenda of sessions, each with its speaker, and a speaker profile that opens alongside.
Investors jump straight to the part they care about.
- Phase 04
Show the portfolio
Portfolio companies are listed by fund with their logos and reports, so an investor can see what each fund holds at a glance.
The experience we created
A portal investors can find their way around
A calm, consistent portal on the Kelp design system: one sidebar for funds, transactions, documents and the annual meeting, a portfolio view by fund, and an annual meeting experience built for catching up after the event.
Annual meeting hub
The meeting video with an agenda of sessions and speakers, so investors can jump to any part.
Speaker profiles
A profile panel opens beside the video with each speaker's role and background.
Portfolio by fund
Portfolio companies listed under each fund, with access to their reports.
What it includes
Shared documents
Reports, notices, tax, financial statements, valuation reports and compliance documents, each in its own place.
Funds and transactions
A view of each fund the investor holds and the transactions against it.
Profile and onboarding
Investor profile, onboarding and policies are part of the same navigation.
Gallery
Screens from the portal
“Working with DesignIt on Kelp was a great experience. The team helped us simplify and communicate complex data in the most effective way, whether through tables, graphs, or visualisations. They were always approachable, collaborative, and open to exploring multiple solutions throughout the process.”
Frequently asked questions
What is the Truenorth investor portal?
An investor portal for a private-equity fund manager, built on Kelp: fund documents, portfolio companies and the annual meeting recordings in one place for its investors.
What problem did the Truenorth investor portal solve?
Investors do not use the portal daily, so it has to be obvious where everything is, every time. The question we set out to answer: How might we give a fund's investors a calm, trustworthy place to find every document, see every portfolio company and catch up on the annual meeting, without emailing the investor-relations team?
How did Designit approach the Truenorth investor portal?
We worked in 4 phases: Start from the investor's questions; give documents a structure; make the meeting navigable; show the portfolio. We organised the portal around what investors come to find: an executive summary, their funds, transactions, shared documents and the annual meeting.
What is an investor portal in private equity?
A secure website where a fund's investors (limited partners) find their fund documents, reports, notices, statements and portfolio information, instead of receiving everything by email. Truenorth's portal also hosts the annual meeting.
What features should an LP investor portal have?
Clear navigation by fund, a structured document library (reports, notices, tax, financial statements, valuation and compliance), a portfolio view, and a way to revisit events such as the annual meeting. Above all, investors should find what they need without contacting investor relations.
How do you organise documents in an investor portal?
By type first, the way investors look for them: reports, notices, tax, financial statements, valuation reports, compliance and others. Date and fund become filters inside each type.
How do you make a long recorded event easy to navigate?
Pair the video with an agenda: each session listed with its speaker, clickable to jump straight to it, and a speaker profile that opens alongside without leaving the page.
Was the Truenorth portal built on the same design system as Kelp?
Yes. It uses the same components as Kelp's deals module and plugin, which keeps the experience consistent and the product faster to extend.
How long does a Designit engagement take?
A Design Sprint is delivered in 5 business days. Full product design engagements run 4–12 weeks depending on scope. Monthly retainers are ongoing, with one active request at a time and a 24-hour response time.
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