Investment Management Weekly articles from September 2008

Investment Management Weekly archives from September 2008

Student Loans:A World of Difference Under the Cap n' Gowns.
September 8, 2008... Byline: Karen Sibayan Although previously regarded as a cookie-cutter asset class, the student loan product is suffering - like all the other major securitization sectors - from a lack of investor confidence. The task is to win these...

Santa Barbara Looks at EAFE Manager.
September 8, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The search for a manager to oversee an EAFE equity portfolio at the Santa Barbara County Employees' Retirement System (SBCERS) is slowly winding down. The board had been scheduled to confirm the selection of...

Texas Teachers Narrows Executive Search.
September 8, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The search for a new deputy executive director at the Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS) has been narrowed to three candidates, confirmed Howard Goldman, spokesman for the $113 billion plan. Pattie...

Hall Capital Steps Up Marketing Efforts.
September 8, 2008... Byline: Jakema Lewis Hall Capital Partners has hired Richard Grand-Jean as a principal and director of business development, where he will focus on the eastern U.S. region, said Richard Chimberg, a spokesman for the San Francisco-based...

Odds & Ends.
September 8, 2008... Byline: Editorial Staff * Heidi Walker Pfabe has been appointed as a managing director at Coast Asset Management, where she will be responsible for the firm's international marketing and investor relations. Prior to joining Coast, Walker...

Texas Review Board Head Steps Down.
September 8, 2008... Byline: Editorial Staff The Texas Pension Review Board (PRB) is losing its executive director, according to published reports. The PRB oversees the public retirement systems in Texas, both state and local, in regard to their actuarial...

Ohio BWC Postpones Searches.
September 8, 2008... Byline: Jakema Lewis The Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation (BWC) has placed all RFP issuances on hold, pending the results of an asset/liability study, CIO Bruce Dunn told IMW last week. In June, Dunn told IMW that the board had...

OPERS Broadens Real Estate Horizons.
September 8, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The Ohio Public Employees Retirement System (OPERS) has kicked off a search for a real estate investment manager to oversee an international public securities mandate. The portfolio will be for up to $600 million....

Tennessee Fund Moves Into PE.
September 8, 2008... Byline: Jakema Lewis The $25 billion Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System (TCRS) is reportedly planning to invest up to $900 million in private equity following a recent shift in the state's legislation. According to local reports,...

Georgia Plan to Place $10M with TIPS Manager.
September 8, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The $110 million Chatham County Employee Retirement Plan (CCERP) has issued an RFP for a Treasury Inflation Protected Securities (TIPS) manager to oversee a $10 million mandate. Linda Cramer, finance director for...

Texas Employees' Tweaks Asset Allocation.
September 8, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The board of the Employees' Retirement System of Texas (ERS) approved adding private equity and real estate to its investment scheme following the results of asset allocation and liability studies, said Mary Jane...

Arizona Safety Narrows Advisor Search.
September 8, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo NEPC, Pension Consulting Alliance, Strategic Investment Solutions and Wilshire Associates are being considered for an investment consultant contract at the $7.3 billion Arizona Public Safety Personnel Retirement System...

City of Fresno Interviews RE Firms.
September 8, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The investment committee of the City of Fresno Retirement Systems (CFRS) was scheduled to interview core and value-added real estate managers at its board meeting last month, according to the agenda. CFRS oversees...

PBGC May Sue Auto Parts Maker.(At Press Time)
September 15, 2008... Byline: Editorial Staff The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. (PBGC) and Delphi Corp. could be headed to court, as the PBGC is seeking to secure claims of missed payments of several hundred million dollars by the auto parts maker. ...

Odds & Ends.(Odds & Ends)
September 15, 2008... Byline: Editorial Staff * Pioneer Investments has named Brian Stack portfolio manager of the firm's $315 million Growth Opportunities Fund. Stack replaces Peter Riley, who will continue to serve as portfolio manager for the firm's...

Invesco Adds Researcher to Quant Group.(Industry at a Glance)
September 15, 2008... Byline: Jakema Lewis Robert Ginsberg has joined Invesco Quantitative Strategies (IQS) as a research analyst, bringing the number of research professionals working on the product to 23. Ginsberg will share joint responsibility for...

MFC Global Adds Director to Sales Team.(Industry at a Glance)
September 15, 2008... Byline: Jakema Lewis Reid Kilberg has left SIT Investment Associates, where he was responsible for marketing fixed-income products to the institutional market, to join MFC Global Investment Management as a managing director for its sales...

TS&W Hires for Consultant Efforts.(Industry at a Glance)
September 15, 2008... Byline: Jakema Lewis Tracey Ivey has joined value manager Thompson, Siegel & Walmsley (TS&W) as the director of consultant relations, it was announced last week. She replaces Tracy Musser who has joined the firm's newly created...

New Hampshire R.S. Makes Changes.(Industry at a Glance)
September 15, 2008... Byline: Marc sorondo Constance Donovan, executive director and general counsel for the $5.5 billion New Hampshire Retirement System (NHRS) is leaving the plan, following a less-than six month stint at the fund. Donovan joined the NHRS...

New Hampshire May Seek Consultant.
September 15, 2008... Byline: Jakema Lewis The $5.5 billion New Hampshire Retirement System (NHRS) will likely launch an investment consultant search this month, said CIO Jeff Gendron. "We're going to be distributing an RFP for an invitation-only search,"...

Massachusetts Plan Hits Equity Market.
September 15, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The Webster Retirement System is searching for equity managers to oversee a $2.5 million actively managed mid-cap core mandate and a $2 million actively managed small-cap core mandate. According to the RFPs, the...

Small-Cap Discussed in Fresno County.
September 15, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The Fresno County Employees' Retirement Association (FCERA) recently discussed recommendations to terminate Artisan Partners from a roughly $55 million small-cap growth mandate, said Roberto Pena, administrator of the...

Meketa Group Searches In Triplicate.(General News)
September 15, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo Meketa Investment Group has issued three RFPs, seeking managers interested in overseeing concentrated domestic mid-cap equity, concentrated domestic small/micro-cap equity and concentrated international small-cap...

Credit Hires Continue at California Plan.(General News)
September 15, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The San Bernardino County Employees' Retirement Association (SBCERA) continued its long streak of credit manager hires with the addition of three distressed credit strategy firms to its roster, said Don Pierce,...

City of Los Angeles Looks at ING Debt Fund.(General News)
September 15, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The investment committee of the Los Angeles City Employees' Retirement System (LACERS) considered a new addition to the plan's opportunistic fixed-income program last week, said Christal Chacon, spokeswoman for the...

San Fran Looks At Venture Capital Fund.(General News)
September 15, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The San Francisco City & County Employees' Retirement System (SFERS) considered investing in a new venture capital fund last week. The board discussed making a $30 million commitment to Knightsbridge Advisers'...

LACERA Considers Real Estate Search.(General News)
September 15, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The Los Angeles County Employees' Retirement Association (LACERA) may search for independent fiduciaries to assess real estate co-investments on behalf of the fund. According to documents posted on its Web site,...

Putnam Closes Prime Fund.(At Press Time)
September 22, 2008... Byline: Editorial Staff Putnam Investments announced that the Board of Trustees of the Putnam Funds voted to close the institutional Putnam Prime Money Market Fund. The action is effective as of Sept. 17 at 5 p.m. The assets will be...

Imperial County Meets with Bond Firms.(General News)
September 22, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The Imperial County Employees' Retirement System (ICERS) heard presentations from potential fixed-income managers Bradford & Marzec, Goldman Sachs and Pacific Investment Management Company (PIMCO) last week, according...

Odds & Ends.(Odds & Ends)
September 22, 2008... Byline: Editorial Staff * Citadel Investment Group has named Tobias Gehrke and Anita Nassar managing directors and co-heads of international distribution and marketing for Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. Gehrke was head of the...

Texas Teacher Fund Takes Lehman Hit.(Industry at a Glance)
September 22, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The $113 billion Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS) is feeling the effects of Lehman Brothers' recently announced bankruptcy after loading up on the investment bank's stocks and bonds earlier in the year. ...

Two Searches for Alabama Trust Fund.
September 22, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo Alabama State Treasurer Kay Ivey has issued two RFPs on behalf of the $678 million Prepaid Affordable College Tuition Trust Fund (PACT). Being sought after are a passive core fixed-income manager to oversee a $68...

Wisconsin Plan Considers Commodities.
September 22, 2008... Byline: Jakema Lewis The $1.46 billion Milwaukee County Employees' Retirement System is in the process of receiving education on investments in the commodities asset class. Mercer is advising the Wisconsin system. "Commodities...

Market Turmoil to Have Ripple Effect.
September 22, 2008... Byline: Dave Lindorff One of the more embarrassing and potentially costly effects of the government takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two quasi-private shareholder-owned corporations that between them have backed $12 trillion...

Oklahoma Employee Fund Seeks Index Firms.(General News)
September 22, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The Oklahoma Public Employees' Retirement System (OPERS) has launched a search for passive index fund managers. OPERS oversees the retirement investments of the $6.2 billion employees' system and the $225 million...

Denver ERP Wraps Up Advisor Search.(General News)
September 22, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The Denver Employees Retirement Plan will interview two firms in its search for a real estate consultant at tomorrow's board meeting, confirmed Steven Hutt, executive director at the $2.4 billion plan. He...

Arizona Public Safety Interviews Consultants.(General News)
September 22, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The list of potential consultants for the Arizona Public Safety Personnel Retirement System (PSPRS) was slashed in half by the plan's search subcommittee at a meeting earlier this month, said Jim Hacking, administrator...

Pa. Muni. Narrows Search Field.(General News)
September 22, 2008... Byline: Jakema Lewis The Luzerne County Retirement System has named finalists in its search for an investment consultant. Being considered for the contract are Bank of New York Mellon, Creative Financial Group, Smith Barney, UBS...

Pennsylvania SERS Approves $80M in Alts.(General News)
September 22, 2008... Byline: Marc sorondo Three follow-on alternative investment commitments were approved by the Pennsylvania State Employees' Retirement System (PA SERS) at its board meeting this month. According to the plan's Web site, two private...

Economic Stress to Affect Commodities.(At Press Time)
September 29, 2008... Byline: Editorial Staff Investments in commodities should be carefully scrutinized until the global economy bounces back, The Boston Company Asset Management advises in an upcoming white paper. "We would maintain a modest allocation to...

Denver Drops Townsend for Summit.(News)
September 29, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The Denver Employees Retirement Plan (DERP) decided to terminate The Townsend Group last week, confirmed Steven Hutt, executive director of the $2.4 billion plan. Hutt said that the fund will end its contract with...

New Jersey Adds To Alternatives Roster.(News)
September 29, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The New Jersey State Investment Council (NJ SIC) made commitments to four new alternative investment funds at a Sept. 18 meeting, confirmed Tom Bell, spokesman for the $77.2 billion plan. Bell said that the council...

Sacramento County Picks REIT Manager.(News)
September 29, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The Sacramento County Employees' Retirement System (SCERS) has selected CB Richard Ellis Global Real Estate Securities for a $60 million global REIT mandate, confirmed Jeff States, CIO of the $6.3 billion California...

Odds & Ends.(Odds & Ends)
September 29, 2008... Byline: Editorial Staff * Thomas Gahan has joined Providence Equity Partners as president of the private equity firm's newly established capital markets group, where he will focus on debt in the media, entertainment, communications and...

Texas Teachers' Names Deputy Director.(industry at a glance)
September 29, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS) has selected Brian Guthrie to serve as its new deputy director, said Howard Goldman, spokesman for the $113 billion plan. Guthrie is currently the deputy director for...

San Diego City Watches Putnam.
September 29, 2008... Byline: Jakema Lewis The impending departure of Putnam's Head of Investments Kevin Cronin has already prompted one firm to place the manager on its watchlist. The San Diego City Employees' Retirement System (SDCERS) will be monitoring...

Iowa PERS Preps Overlay Search.
September 29, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The Iowa Public Employees' Retirement System (IPERS) plans to issue an RFP for a beta overlay manager in the upcoming months, said Karl Koch, CIO of the $23.2 billion plan. "The RFP will not be issued until...

Shorting Ban Vexes Some Funds.
September 29, 2008... Byline: Dave Lindorff Volatile markets are one thing, but when banks stop lending, and people like the President, the Secretary of the Treasury and the Chairman of the Federal Reserve, start talking about the possibility of a financial...

Pa. Fund To Seek Investment Advisor.(News)
September 29, 2008... Byline: Jakema Lewis Due to losses of $4.4 million in recent weeks, the Carbon County Employees' Retirement System is hitting the market for an investment consultant to advise the Pennsylvania plan on ways to diversify its portfolio. ...

Massachusetts Plan Hunts For Asian Equity.(News)
September 29, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The Town of Lexington Retirement System has launched a search for an investment manager to oversee a $4 million to $6 million actively managed Asia ex. Japan equity mandate at the plan. Marguerite Oliva,...

SamCERA Moves Forward With Searches.(News)
September 29, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo As first reported on imweekly.com (9/24/08), the San Mateo County Employees' Retirement Association (SamCERA) is prepping a large-cap domestic growth equity search, which will be launched next month. David Bailey,...

Fresno County Fund Sticks With Wurts.(News)
September 29, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The Fresno County Employees' Retirement Association (FCERA) decided to continue using Wurts & Associates as its general investment consultant, said Roberto Pena, administrator of the $2.7 billion California plan. ...

Fayette County System Narrows Equity Search.(News)
September 29, 2008... Byline: Marc Sorondo The Fayette County Employees' Pension System has named finalists in its search for a large-cap value domestic equity manager. According to documents on consultant Morrison Fiduciary Advisors' Web site, the fund has...