Public institutions, pension funds, and sovereign-backed investors continue to allocate capital to specialist managers across venture capital, private equity, real assets, private credit, and impact strategies. Collectively, these mandates underscore a clear preference for experienced managers with sector depth, strong governance, and the ability to deploy capital in line with policy, impact, or income objectives.

West Regional Development Agency of Romania
Following a competitive procurement process, Agentia pentru Dezvoltare Regionala Vest appointed Aster Capital Partners to establish and manage a new EU-backed venture capital fund targeting post-seed and growth-stage SMEs in Western Romania.
Appointment: Aster Capital Partners (with Iceberg Plus and Venture Booster)
Investment size: €3.5m management contract; EU-funded VC vehicle with GP commitment and private co-investment

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments)
CPP Investments committed capital to a Japan-focused hospitality strategy, reflecting renewed interest in Asia-Pacific real estate recovery themes.
Appointment: SC Capital Partners Group
Investment size: Up to JPY 25.4bn (c. C$222m)

Swiss Investment Fund for Emerging Markets (SIFEM)
SIFEM confirmed a commitment to a climate-focused private equity vehicle targeting circular economy infrastructure across South and Southeast Asia.
Appointment: Circulate Capital (Asia Fund II)
Investment size: USD 15m

Shetland Charitable Trust
Following an external investment review, Shetland Charitable Trust diversified into private credit to enhance defensive income and capital preservation.
Appointment: Partners Group
Investment size: c. £73m private credit allocation

Scottish Borders Council Pension Fund
The fund committed cornerstone capital to a newly launched UK-focused social and impact private markets vehicle aligned with domestic growth priorities.
Appointment: M&G plc
Investment size: £30m initial commitment (into a £130m launch fund targeting £1bn+)

What This Signals for Future Mandate Opportunities
Taken together, these appointments highlight sustained allocator demand for specialist managers with proven execution in targeted strategies—EU-backed venture capital, Asia-focused real assets, climate and circular economy private equity, defensive private credit, and UK impact investing. For investment management firms, future mandate opportunities are most likely to favour those able to demonstrate institutional-grade governance, measurable outcomes (financial or impact-led), and the capacity to align capital deployment with public policy, sustainability, or income objectives across multiple market cycles.

Across infrastructure credit, opportunistic private credit, public equity, natural resources, and advisory governance, U.S. public pension activity continues to demonstrate active capital deployment, disciplined renewals, and consultant-driven portfolio evolution. Collectively, these five actions highlight near-term mandate execution, meaningful ticket sizes, and clear preferences for specialist managers and scalable platforms.

• Fresno County Employees’ Retirement Association (FCERA)
FCERA executed a $20 million commitment to a closed-end infrastructure credit strategy, reinforcing its 2026 real assets pacing plan. The mandate was awarded to AB CarVal through the CVI Aviation Income Fund A II, LP, confirming near-term deployment into niche, income-oriented infrastructure credit.

• Texas County & District Retirement System (TCDRS)
TCDRS awarded a $200 million opportunistic direct lending mandate, emphasizing flexibility and complexity premium in private credit. The allocation was made to LuminArx Opportunistic Alternative Solutions Onshore Fund LP, underscoring continued demand for scalable, non-traditional credit platforms.

• Medford Retirement System
Medford completed its investment consultant RFP and appointed New England Pension Consultants (NEPC). While not a capital allocation, the appointment sets the stage for consultant-led manager reviews across public and private markets, with approximately $292.5 million in plan assets potentially subject to re-positioning.

• New York State Teachers’ Retirement System (NYSTRS)
NYSTRS renewed Arrowstreet Capital for one year within its international equity portfolio, maintaining quantitative active exposure via a separate account. The renewal reflects continued use of quant strategies as portfolio complements rather than core replacements.

• District of Columbia Retirement Board (DCRB)
DCRB reaffirmed its private natural resources exposure with a $100 million commitment to Quantum Energy Partners IX. The re-up signals sustained conviction in specialist energy managers and continued pacing within real assets and alternatives.

What This Signals for Future Mandate Opportunities

Taken together, these actions point to an active and selective U.S. public pension market. Near-term opportunities are strongest for specialist managers in infrastructure credit, opportunistic private credit, and energy-focused private capital, particularly those capable of absorbing $20 million to $200 million tickets. At the same time, consultant appointments and manager renewals indicate that upcoming searches are likely to be incremental, consultant-driven, and focused on differentiation, downside protection, and governance quality rather than wholesale portfolio change. Investment management firms positioned with scalable platforms, niche expertise, and strong consultant alignment are best placed for the next wave of mandates.

Across UK corporate DB schemes, US public pensions, LGPS pools, asset owners continued to prioritise delegated governance, scalable pooled structures, and specialist managers with proven execution in core portfolio building blocks. Collectively, these decisions reinforce a clear focus on efficiency, risk control, and institutional-grade implementation rather than opportunistic complexity.

E.ON UK Group of the Electricity Supply Pension Scheme completed a trustee-led strategic review and transitioned to a full OCIO model, appointing Schroders Solutions to deliver delegated, cashflow-aware multi-asset management. The fiduciary mandate covers global growth and hedging assets and is fully funded, with assets transitioning during 2025.

The Arkansas Teacher Retirement System approved a new private equity commitment as part of its 2025 vintage pacing, appointing Constellation Wealth Capital to manage a control-oriented U.S. buyout strategy. The system committed $45 million to Constellation Wealth Capital Fund II.

Following a competitive procurement, LGPS Central launched a new pooled global investment grade credit fund, appointing Capital Group, J.P. Morgan Asset Management, and Neuberger Berman as specialist managers. The mandates sit within a large pooled LGPS vehicle, with aggregate scale across participating funds.

The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission Employees’ Retirement System finalised a core real estate allocation to TA Realty, reinforcing its focus on stable, income-oriented U.S. property exposure. The system committed $37.5 million via a commingled core real estate fund.

Staffordshire Pension Fund increased its defensive fixed income exposure through its existing pooled arrangements, allocating an additional £19 million to the LGPS Central Corporate Bond Fund. The increase maintained investment-grade, risk-controlled exposure rather than introducing a new standalone mandate.

What This Signals for Future Mandate Opportunities

Taken together, these appointments point to continued demand for delegated investment models, pooled implementation, and established managers with strong governance credentials. Investment management firms are most likely to access new mandates by demonstrating OCIO scale, pooled-vehicle readiness, and specialist expertise in core asset classes, with future opportunities increasingly concentrated in manager refreshes, sub-fund launches, and incremental allocations rather than large, unconstrained searches.

Public pension and institutional schemes globally continued to deploy capital across private markets, fiduciary management, and active public equities, with a clear bias toward established managers, consultant-led processes, and scalable structures aligned with long-term portfolio construction and pacing discipline.

• Policemen’s Annuity and Benefit Fund of Chicago approved a new private real estate allocation as part of portfolio rebalancing.
– Appointed manager: TA Realty
– Strategy/vehicle: U.S. value-add real estate via TA Realty Fund XIV
– Commitment size: $20 million

• Ohio Police & Fire Pension Fund (OP&F) approved a European buyout commitment to maintain lower-mid-market private equity exposure.
– Appointed manager: Inflexion
– Strategy/vehicle: Inflexion Buyout Fund VII (Europe-focused buyout)
– Commitment size: Up to €25 million

• National Federation of Municipal Personnel Mutual Aid Associations (Japan) completed a manager-entry process for a new alternatives product.
– Appointed manager: Neuberger Berman (via NB Alternatives Advisers)
– Strategy/vehicle: Global private equity fund-of-funds
– Commitment size: Not disclosed

• Lafarge UK Pension Plan concluded a full fiduciary management tender, outsourcing assets alongside a sister scheme.
– Appointed manager: Van Lanschot Kempen
– Mandate type: Full fiduciary management with significant private markets exposure
– Assets under management: ~£1.25 billion (scheme share of £2.5 billion total)

• IRCEC (France) finalised a competitive EU tender for a long-duration public equities mandate.
– Appointed manager: Groupama Asset Management
– Strategy/vehicle: Dedicated Eurozone equities “blend” fund
– Mandate size: ~€110 million

What this Signals for Future Opportunities

These appointments signal sustained demand for institutional-quality managers with proven track records, strong consultant or fiduciary relationships, and the ability to operate within formal procurement frameworks. For investment management firms, near-term mandate opportunities are most likely to emerge in mid-sized private market commitments, fiduciary-led sub-allocations, and long-duration public equity mandates—favoring managers that combine scale, governance strength, and readiness for repeatable selection processes.

Institutional investors continue to emphasize efficient portfolio operations, scalable platforms, and disciplined risk management across public markets, private markets, and overlays. Recent approvals highlight sustained demand for passive overlays, emerging manager programs, specialist real assets strategies, and customized hedge fund structures, with CIO discretion increasingly shaping execution speed.

LACERA has approved and advanced a series of significant manager appointments and allocations across overlays, real assets, private markets, hedge funds, and co-investments, reflecting continued emphasis on scale, customization, emerging manager access, and execution efficiency across the Total Fund.

Key appointments and approvals include:

• Parametric Portfolio Associates – Advancing appointment as passive cash overlay manager for the Total Fund and OPEB Trust; mandate currently in contract development.
– Estimated size: Overlay exposure in the hundreds of millions
– Vehicle: Passive cash overlay / cash equitization mandate

• BlackRock – Appointed to implement a Real Assets Emerging Manager Program.
– Investment: $400 million
– Vehicle: Discretionary separate account

• GCM Grosvenor – Appointed to implement a Real Estate Emerging Manager Program.
– Investment: $400 million
– Vehicle: Discretionary separate account

• Orion Mine Finance – Approved commitment to a specialist natural resources credit strategy.
– Investment: $100 million
– Vehicle: Orion Mine Finance Fund IV, L.P.

• Aequim Arbitrage – Approved allocation to a customized hedge fund mandate.
– Investment: $300 million
– Vehicle: Dedicated managed account

• Partners Group – Executed a real assets co-investment under CIO discretionary authority.
– Investment: $50 million
– Vehicle: Direct real assets co-investment

• Manager: Partners Group
–Investment: $50 million
–Vehicle: Direct real assets co-investment

Illinois Police Officers’ Pension Investment Fund (IPOPIF)

IPOPIF approved a new US high yield allocation, appointing MetLife Investment Management following a competitive procurement process.

• Manager: MetLife Investment Management
• Investment: ~2% of plan assets (~$260 million)
• Vehicle: Opportunistic US high yield bond mandate

San Diego City Employees’ Retirement System (SDCERS)

SDCERS approved a private debt allocation to Blue Owl Capital, reinforcing its focus on income-oriented private credit strategies.

• Manager: Blue Owl Capital
• Investment: $50 million
• Vehicle: Blue Owl Diversified Lending Fund

Sacramento County Employees’ Retirement System (SCERS)

SCERS completed a re-up with Shamrock Capital, reaffirming its allocation to opportunistic private credit strategies.

• Manager: Shamrock Capital
• Investment: $50 million
• Vehicle: Shamrock Capital Content Fund IV, L.P.

What This Signals

These appointments highlight a shift toward scaled, execution-ready managers, greater use of customized structures, and faster deployment through CIO discretion—while maintaining selective exposure to specialist strategies that enhance income and diversification.