NORTH AMERICA - The Virginia Retirement System has made its first foray into infrastructure, with two commitments totalling $450m (€360m).
Public relations director Jeanne Chenault said the commitments came as part of the pension fund's strategy to invest capital into the asset class on a national and an international basis.
The commitments included a $300m investment into the IFM Global Infrastructure fund and $150m investment in the Global Infrastructure Partners Fund II.
Both were announced at the pension fund's 22 August board meeting.
The deal with IFM, signed on 22 June, is for a one-year period, while the allocation to Fund II, inked on 13 July, runs for three years.
Formed in 2006, the Global Infrastructure is an open-ended commingled fund with approximately $5bn in assets.
The fund targets developed countries around the world, including Australia, Europe and the US, and invests in a variety of assets, including mass-transportation systems, waterways and airports.
Fund II is a commingled fund managed by Global Infrastructure Partners, which has $10bn in assets under management. The fund looks to invest in a wide range of assets worldwide.
Virginia has placed both of the commitments into its real asset category.
The pension fund currently has more than $4.3bn invested in real asset.
