New York Common dishes out $510 mln to PE in July

New York State Common Retirement Fund made $510 million in private equity commitments in July, according to a document posted on the New York State Comptroller’s website.

The investments were:

• $100 million to New York Business Development Commission, which underwrites loans to small businesses in New York state, which closed on July 12;

• $225 million to Searchlight Capital III, managed by Searchlight Capital Partners, focused on debt and equity investments in middle market companies in North America and Europe, which closed July 2. Searchlight Capital III has a $2.75 billion target and $3.25 billion cap, Buyouts has reported. The fund had raised about $1.5 billion from 86 investors as of July 11, according to a Form D.

• $185 million to Warburg Pincus China & Southeast Asia II, a $4.25 billion fund managed by Warburg Pincus focused on growth-oriented investments in China and Southeast Asia, which closed July 3. Warburg Pincus China & Southeast Asia II closed in June at $4.25 billion. It launched in January with a $3.5 billion target, according to a press release.

New York Common is the third-largest pension in the United States, valued at $210.5 billion as of Mar. 31. According to the comptroller’s website, its total return for the most recent state fiscal year was 5.3 percent overall and 9.9 percent for private equity.

Action item: read New York Common’s 2018 CAFR here.