Deutsche Bank Global Prime Finance (DB) has released the results of its 13th annual Alternative Investment Survey.  This article, the first of two-part coverage, describes the survey methodology and demographics and summarizes the portions of the survey that deal with allocations to alternative investments in general, and to hedge funds in particular; allocation plans by strategy and region; and investor preferences regarding hedge fund track record, minimum size, and initial and target investment ticket sizes.  The second article in the series will discuss the portions of the survey that address fees and liquidity trends; trends among intermediaries; and early stage investing and seeding.  For coverage of DB’s November 2013 survey, see “Deutsche Bank Survey Describes the Contours of the Nontraditional Hedge Fund Product Market: Investor Appetite, Performance, Marketing, Fees and More,” Hedge Fund Law Report, Vol. 7, No. 3 (Jan. 23, 2014).  For coverage of other recent surveys of investor preferences with regard to alternative investments, see “Credit Suisse Hedge Fund Survey Considers Factors in Institutional Investors’ Investment and Redemption Decisions, Appetite for Alternative UCITS and Anticipated 2015 Hedge Fund Investments by Strategy and Region,” Hedge Fund Law Report, Vol. 8, No. 12 (Mar. 27, 2015); and “Ernst & Young’s 2014 Global Hedge Fund and Investor Survey Considers Growth Areas for Hedge Fund Managers, Related Costs and Challenges, Operating Expenses and Cybersecurity,” Hedge Fund Law Report, Vol. 8, No. 2 (Jan. 15, 2015).