Human Capital as an Asset Class 

Human capital - the competencies and potential of a region's workforce - forms the basic building blocks of its economy. Yet there is currently no infrastructure for investors to systemically, attractively, bet on this foundational asset. This briefing outlines how a jurisdiction’s POEMs (Public Official E-Markets) platform could include mechanisms incentivizing investment directly into upskilling or equipping breadwinners, for financial, social or general economic return.

At its simplest, this investment might involve a speculator noting market data showing, for example, a shortage of roofers in one area and an oversupply of carpet layers. She could offer to fund roofing training and certification for perhaps 50 carpet layers who had a proven track record of reliability. Those who accepted her offer would have to agree to perhaps 30% of their income uplift being diverted to the investor over the following 6 months. Other funds in POEMs might be (a) enabling home hairdressers to buy equipment (b) providing childcare, travel fares, or other support allowing workers to earn more (c) providing goods that local people can rent for income.

A fund like the carpet-layers-to-roofers example above can be just a foundational element for systemic direct investment in human potential. Larger investors will require aggregation of opportunities, indices, automated trading, aftermarkets, and a suite of tools to action decisions. The aim is to make a region's human capital an enticing asset class alongside stocks, bonds, currencies, precious metals, or real estate. 

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This paper is currently going through final fact-checking and clearance. It will be released here during 2026.