Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS) saw its net assets under management rise above the C$60 billion mark in 2012, increasing C$5.7 billion year over year. The Canadian pension fund also posted a 10% return on its total investments last year, based on “strong performance in its private market portfolio”. OMERS’ overall private market portfolio had a 13.8% investment return, led by returns of 19.2% from internally-managed buyout fund OMERS Private Equity.

Private equity firm TowerBrook Capital Partners has closed its fourth fund at $3.5 billion, it announced early Thursday.

Vancouver-based start-up Hootsuite, which sells social-media management services has attracted a $20 million investment from OMERS Ventures, part of the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, writes Reuters. OMERS bought the stake in a secondary transaction from a handful of employees and early investors, according to Reuters. Reuters – Big companies like Groupon letting their founders [...]

Canadian pension fund Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System has sealed additional financing for its acquisition of Scotland-based shipping services company V.Group, Reuters reported Friday. HSBC and Citi joined the Royal Bank of Canada in underwriting a $260 million loan for the acquisition. OMERS acquired V.Group in July from private equity firm Exponent for $520 million backed by leveraged loans solely underwritten at the time by RBC, Reuters wrote.

A consortium of Canadian pension funds, including the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, will pay $2.1 billion pounds ($3.4 billion) to operate Britain’s only high-speed railway, Reuters reported. The deal – by which the consortium will operate the line, called High Speed 1, for 30 years – represents Britain’s recent efforts to cut the national debt, Reuters said. The High Speed 1 route links St Pancras station in north London to the Channel Tunnel, and became fully operational in November 2007.