October 2025 Public Pension Brief

Overview

Public pension investment activity remained robust in October, with over $8.1 billion in new commitments tracked across private equity, private credit, real estate, and infrastructure. Private equity drew strong allocations, particularly from Minnesota SBI, Texas TRS, and New York State Common. Real assets continued to gain traction, with San Francisco ERS unveiling a $550M pacing plan for 2026. Consultant transitions and staffing updates also marked the month, with key hires in equities and fixed income. Internationally, infrastructure debt and pooling initiatives drove European plan activity.

Highlights from October:

New York State Common Retirement Fund committed $500M to William Blair Emerging Markets and $250M to Kayne Anderson Real Estate Partners VII, along with $200M to OHA CLO Equity Fund III.
San Francisco Employees’ Retirement System set a $1.1B pacing plan for private equity and $550M for real assets in 2026, signaling continued appetite for long-term alternatives.
Minnesota State Board of Investment committed nearly $1.5B across 11 private equity and private credit funds, including $300M to Blackstone Strategic Partners X and $250M to Permira IX.
Texas Teachers Retirement System disclosed a series of commitments across private equity and infrastructure, including $100M to Sage Equity Investors and $75M to Verto Logistics JVCo.
Los Angeles County Employees’ Retirement Association approved $700M in private equity and real estate commitments, highlighted by $400M to Advent International GPE XI.
VBL (Germany) awarded two €750M infrastructure debt mandates to AllianzGI and Global Infrastructure Partners, reflecting strong demand for long-duration yield.
Delaware Public Employees’ Retirement System restructured its public equity sleeve, allocating $250M to Lingotto Global Equity and trimming Baillie Gifford and T. Rowe Price.
Sandra Maria Schaufler was appointed Managing Director of Public Equities at NYSTRS, and Bryan Moore was officially named CIO at South Carolina RSIC.
Bryan Moore was officially named Chief Investment Officer at South Carolina Retirement System Investment Commission after serving in an interim capacity.
Iowa PERS outlined a $2.35B private markets investment plan for 2025, with large real estate and private credit allocations on the horizon.