NYSCRF approves nearly $420m in commitments

The US public pension fund has backed three buyout, three growth equity and one co-investment vehicle in its latest round of commitments.

Institution: New York State Common Retirement Fund
Headquarters: Albany, New York
AUM: $247.7 billion
Allocation to alternatives: 22.6%

New York State Common Retirement Fund has confirmed $420 million-worth of commitments to seven private equity vehicles, as reported by affiliate title Private Equity International.

The commitment structure comprised $250 million to Avance Investment Partners; $120 million to Madison Square Fund II; $10 million to Viola Ventures VI; $25 million to Boyu Capital‘s Fund V and $5 million to Growth Fund I; and $4.9 million to 5Y Capital‘s Capital Growth Fund I and $3.3 million to its Capital Evolution Fund II.

CEF II will seek early-stage venture investments, whereas the CGF I will make investments in mid to late-stage venture opportunities in China. Both vehicles by Boyu Capital will be targeting minority growth and growth buyouts in China.

The commitment to Avance Investment Management marks a new relationship for the CRF. The vehicle is set to pursue buyout transactions in the US lower mid-market targeting consumer and services related industries.

The recent commitments made by the pension fund indicates a special investment inclination toward the Asia-Pacific markets, as $38.2 million has been allocated to funds focusing purely on investments in early-stage ventures and buyout transactions in China.

The $247.7 billion US pension fund has a 10 percent target allocation to private equity that currently stands at 11.2 percent.

Illustrated below is the current investment portfolio and recent fund commitments made by NYSCRF.

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