Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund, Oak Brook, made three new commitments totaling up to $210 million at its board meeting Friday.
The $44.7 billion pension fund committed up to $100 million to real estate fund Crow Holdings Realty Partners IX, up to $60 million to middle-market buyout fund Sterling Group Partners V, and up to $50 million in aggregate to venture capital funds Mayfield XVI and Mayfield Select II, confirmed spokesman John Krupa in an email.
IMRF committed up to $75 million to Crow Holdings Realty Partners VIII in 2016, up to $25 million to mezzanine debt fund Sterling Group Credit Fund in 2017, and up to $30 million in aggregate to Mayfield XV and Mayfield Select in 2016.
As of Dec. 31, the actual allocations to real estate and alternative investments were 6.6% and 5.4%, respectively; their respective targets are 9% and 7%.
Separately, the board formally approved redeeming its $1.3 billion investment in Progress Investment Management's manager-of-managers program due to that firm's impending closure.
The assets will be "reinvested in a combination of existing equity and fixed income investments, private market investments, and a source for meeting cash needs. Assets will stay with minority investment managers once fully redeployed, excluding temporary positioning," according to a news release on the pension fund's website.
The board also approved changing its relationship with two managers previously part of the Progress manager-of-managers arrangement.
The board approved Longfellow Investment Management as a core-plus fixed-income manager with a portfolio of up to $175 million and Ramirez Asset Management as a core fixed-income manager with a portfolio of up to $125 million.
Both firms qualify as minority and/or women-owned business enterprise firms.
As of Dec. 31, IMRF had $10.5 billion invested with minority-owned managers across equity, fixed income, private equity and real estate.
