LACERA commits over $1 bln to PE in second half of 2019

The $58 billion pension fund committed to funds from Wynnchurch, Revelstoke, and MBK partners among others as 2019 closed out.

Los Angeles County Employees Retirement Association made about $1.4 billion in private equity commitments in the second half of 2019, according to documents posted on its website ahead of its board meeting on Wednesday.

At its meeting on Nov. 20, 2018, the board approved the following commitments:

• $60 million to Revelstoke Single Asset Fund I, a $660 million fund managed by Revelstoke Capital Partners focused on a single-asset secondary deal;

• $125 million to Sterling Investment Partners IV, managed by Sterling Investment Partners, which focuses on “middle market distribution and business services companies,” according to its website.

At its Dec. 11, 2018 meeting, the board approved the following commitments:

• $75 million to Wynnchurch Capital Partners V, managed by Wynnchurch Capital, a buyouts fund focused on North American equity and debt investments;

• $150 million to MBK Partners Fund V, a North Asia-focused buyouts fund managed by MBK Partners with a $6 billion target, according to Reuters, and a $6.5 billion hard cap, according to New Jersey State Investment Council documents;

• $500 million into a “single-investor separate account structure” with Napier Park Global Capital, an alternative assets manager.

LACERA also committed $30 million to Access Foundation Partners Group II, a secondaries vehicle, according to a slide presentation prepared by StepStone Group. It was not clear whether or not the board had approved this commitment. LACERA did not respond to a request for clarification.

The rest of the commitments from the second half of 2019 were as follows:

• $100 million to BlackFin Financial Services Fund III, a €985 million fund managed by BlackFin Capital Partners which closed in December, according to Pensions & Investments;

• $50 million to Atlantic Street Capital IV, a $500 million small buyouts fund managed by Atlantic Street Capital that closed in September;

• $150 million to RedBird Series 2019, managed by RedBird Capital Partners and focused on mid-sized buyouts;

• $20 million to an unidentified co-investment;

• $150 million and $50 million to Green Equity Investors VIII and Jade Equity Investors, respectively, both managed by Leonard Green & Partners, and which closed in December at $12 billion and $2.75 billion, respectively, according to sister title PE Hub;

• $16 million to Accel-KKR Capital Partners CV III, a $1.39 billion continuation vehicle managed by Accel-KKR which closed in September;

As of Sept. 30, LACERA’s pension fund was valued at $58.4 billion. As of June 30, 2019, the private equity portfolio was valued at about $5.86 billion, according to the StepStone presentation.

Its PE returns for FY19 were 12.6 percent over one year, 17 percent over three years, 13.9 percent over five years, 16.7 percent over 10 years and 16.1 percent since inception.

Action Item: Read the agenda and materials for LACERA’s January 8 board of investments meeting here.