Indiana PERF Hires Private Equity Firms

The $15.6 billion Indiana Public Employees’ Retirement Fund (IPERF) recently added four new private equity investments to its portfolio. The Indianapolis-based plan committed $30 million to Oaktree Capital Management’s Asia Principal Opportunities Fund, which will focus on acquiring businesses in Asia that demonstrate strong potential for growth or operational improvement. A commitment of $75 million was approved for Cerberus Institutional Investors, Series 4, a global fund that will focus on purchasing and improving companies by providing capital and strong management. Energy Capital Partners I received a $50 million commitment from IPERF for its fund that will invest in energy infrastructure, primarily in North America Rounding out the additions was a $50 million commitment to Hellman & Friedman Capital Partners VI. This fund will focus on the purchase of companies in markets such as financial services, media, professional services, and information services. According to a statement issued by IPERF, the plan increased its allocation to alternatives to 15% last August, in an effort to manage risk and further diversify the fund’s investments beyond equity and fixed-income securities. (c) 2007 Mergers and Acquisitions Journal and SourceMedia, Inc. All Rights Reserved. http://www.majournal.com http://www.sourcemedia.com