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Ohio Police & Fire increases allocation to real assets amid infra push

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Ohio Police & Fire, pension fund, private equity, infrastructure
Downtown Cleveland skyline (featuring Key Tower) with the Cuyahoga River, Detroit-Superior Bridge, Autumn colored trees, and a deep blue sky with wispy clouds. Wide Angle. Photo courtesy Dave5957/iStock/Getty Images
  • Ohio Police & Fire made its first commitment to infra in May
  • Real-assets allocation jumps to 8 pct from 5 pct
  • $15.1 bln pension forms separate allocation to private credit

Ohio Police & Fire Pension Fund hiked its allocation to real assets to 8 percent from 5 percent at its June 27-28 meeting, just one month after making its first-ever commitment to an infrastructure fund, spokesman David Graham said in a statement.

The $15.1 billion retirement system also carved private credit investments out of its existing allocation to high-yield investments, Graham wrote. Ohio Police & Fire set a 5 percent target allocation for its private credit holdings with the new asset-allocation strategy.

Ohio Police & Fire has been increasingly active in allocating capital to real assets, including infrastructure and agriculture funds, in recent months. In May, the retirement system committed $150 million across a pair of real-assets funds, including its first-ever allocation to an infrastructure fund when it pledged as much as $100 million to IFM Investors’ open-ended IFM Global Infrastructure Fund.

At the June 27-28 meeting, the board made an $80 million commitment to Meridiam Infrastructure North American III Fund, Graham wrote.

Meridiam will use the fund to back public-private partnerships on new infrastructure projects in the U.S. and Canada, typically in the transportation, social and environmental sectors, according to Graham’s statement.

Fund III’s target could not be determined. Meridiam raised roughly 1.1 billion euros ($1.26 billion) for its second North American fund in 2012, according to a news release. The firm could not be reached for comment.

In addition to its commitment to Meridiam, Ohio Police & Fire committed as much as $50 million to CapitalSpring Investment Partners V, a direct lending fund targeting $500 million for loans to restaurant franchisees. The retirement system made the commitment through its new private credit allocation.

Ohio Police & Fire left its allocation to PE untouched in its new asset-allocation mix. The retirement system held 6.2 percent of its assets in private equity against an 8 percent target as of April 30, according to the website.

Action Item: More information on Ohio Police & Fire: www.op-f.org

Photo of downtown Cleveland courtesy Dave5957/iStock/Getty Images