New York Common Allocates $550 Million to Emerging Managers

The New York State Common Retirement Fund has selected Parish Capital and Bank of America to help it expand its emerging manager private equity portfolio, which targets funds with less than $750 million in assets under management. The system has allocated $350 million to Parish, with $250 million allocated to co-investments and the remaining $100 million allocated to fund investments. The system has allocated $200 million to Bank of America, all of which is to be used for fund investments. To date, the system’s emerging manager program has invested approximately $400 million. 

PRESS RELEASE

The New York State Common Retirement Fund (Fund) has selected Bank of America and Parish Capital as partners in its efforts to expand its emerging manager private equity portfolio, State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli announced today.

“Bank of America and Parish Capital stood out in a strong class of candidates and we look forward to working together to generate strong risk adjusted returns for the Common Retirement Fund and its one million members,” said DiNapoli, who is the sole trustee of the Fund. “We have great confidence in our emerging manager private equity strategy and expect these new partnerships to pay dividends for years to come.”

The Fund will allocate $350 million to Parish Capital, with $250 million of that directed toward co-investment opportunities and $100 million directed toward fund investments. Bank of America will receive $200 million, which it will direct to fund investments. The firms were selected pursuant to a request for proposals issued early last year under DiNapoli’s initiative to expand the Fund’s private equity emerging manager program by $1 billion over three years.

The Fund began a formal emerging manager private equity program in 2005. The program targets funds with assets under management below $750 million, as well as funds owned by women and minority managers. DiNapoli expanded the program last year in order to increase investments with these smaller fund managers who tend to be entrepreneurial and focus on smaller, less traditional segments of the marketplace. The Fund currently has over $400 million invested through the program.