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Rhode Island backs Pollen Street, Wynnchurch funds

The system also committed $30 million to a private credit fund from Shamrock Capital Advisors.

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Rhode Island State Investment Commission, Nautic Partners, private equity, pension fund, limited partners

Rhode Island State Investment Commission committed up to $130 million to private equity and private credit funds, according to an investment report from December.

The system pledged $50 million to Pollen Street Capital’s fourth fund. The fund focuses on lower middle-market companies in the business and financial services industries in Europe, particularly the U.K., according to a memo from Cliffwater LLC, the system’s private equity consultant.

Pollen Street Capital IV will make between 12 to 14 investments in companies with enterprise values up to 200 million pounds ($259.9 million) and EBITDA of 20 million pounds ($25.9 million), documents on the system’s website showed. Target size for the fund wasn’t available.

Rhode Island also committed $50 million to Wynnchurch Capital Partners V, which targets the industrials, consumer goods, aerospace/defense, government contracting, natural resources, food, energy and infrastructure sectors in North America, Buyouts previously reported.

Wynnchurch’s fifth fund acquires privately-owned industrial and manufacturing businesses with investments between $30 million and $150 million.

The pool will also go after “underperforming companies, stressed and distressed businesses, cyclical companies, as well as healthy companies that can be acquired at a discount,” according to a Cliffwater memo.

Nebraska Investment Council committed $50 million to Wynnchurch V at its December meeting. Maine Public Employees Retirement System invested up to $45 million to the fund, according to data from Private Equity International.

Wynnchurch has invested $1.6 billion to more than 60 companies across its previous four funds, Buyouts reported.

Rhode Island committed $30 million to private credit fund Shamrock Capital Content Fund II, targeting $400 million. The pool focuses on the entertainment sector and works on acquiring entertainment assets in film, television, music and videogames, according to a recommendation memo on its website. Shamrock Capital Advisors has $1.6 billion in assets under management.

Private equity makes up 6.7 percent of the system’s portfolio on an 11.25 percent target. Opportunistic private credit sits at 0.6 percent with a 1.5 percent target, Buyouts reported.

Action Item: Check out Rhode Island’s investment material here.