Texas Employees Retirement System, Austin, committed or invested a total of $261 million with eight alternative investment strategies in November and December, a transaction report from the $35.5 billion pension fund showed.
The largest aggregate commitment was $140 million to three infrastructure funds from the retirement system's $1.6 billion infrastructure portfolio; $100 million to ISQ Growth Markets Infrastructure Fund, managed by existing manager I Squared Capital, while two infrastructure co-investments, CO20211214 and CO20211210, each were awarded $20 million commitments.
As a matter of policy, the retirement system does not identify the manager or investment target of co-investments.
The pension fund also invested $66 million in new manager Lijaro Asset Management's Vi Global Equity Master Fund, a long/short equity fund. The hire is through the system's Launchpad emerging hedge fund manager program, managed by hedge funds-of-funds manager PAAMCO Prisma.
Texas Employees' hedge fund portfolio totaled $1.5 billion as of Nov. 30.
From the pension fund's $4.5 billion real estate portfolio, investment officers committed a total of $50 million to two existing managers.
The Meridian Group received a $25 million commitment to Meridian Realty Partners Special Opportunities, and Oak Street Real Estate Capital was also awarded $25 million to invest in ERS Private Real Estate Emerging Manager III-Oak Street. Oak Street manages real estate funds of funds, co-investments and joint ventures, investing in emerging managers with discretion, said Scott Osborn, an ERS financial analyst, in an email.
Finally, from the pension fund's $6.5 billion private equity portfolio, a total of $5 million was committed to two co-investments — $3 million added to a previous $5 million commitment to co-investment CO20210331 and $2 million to CO20211227, a new co-investment opportunity.
