Illinois Teachers' Retirement System, Springfield, issued an RFP for its first foreign currency managers on Friday. Managers are sought to provide currency management for the $44.8 billion fund and may also be asked to “identify opportunities to generate alpha through currency exposure,” the RFP showed.
The primary focus of the currency management program will be the fund's $9 billion non-U.S. equity portfolio with the possibility of also managing foreign currency exposures of TRS' $5.2 billion private equity and $5.8 billion real estate portfolios.
Neither the size of the allocation nor the number of managers has been determined, said David Urbanek, a TRS spokesman, during an interview. Minority-owned money management firms are “strongly encouraged” to apply, the RFP said.
Proposals are due April 22. Finalists likely will be presented to TRS trustees during their Aug. 12–14 board meeting, according to the RFP.
