Maryland SRPS engages Evercore for potential sale

The US pension is exploring options to sell stakes from its $8.4bn private markets portfolio.

Maryland State Retirement and Pension System is working with advisor Evercore on its potential sale of stakes from its $8.4 billion private markets portfolio, Secondaries Investor has learned.

The $51.9 billion US pension had issued a request for information for an advisor to help with a private assets sale in March. The potential sale could include private equity, private credit and private real estate funds, according to the RFI.

The pension is in the early stage of deciding on a process and has not identified which assets it may sell, according to a source familiar with the matter.

The RFI shows that Maryland’s private markets portfolio as of 30 September 2017 comprised of the following:

  • $5.7 billion in private equity
  • $1.1 billion in private credit
  • $801.1 million in real assets
  • $783.3 million in private real estate

The pension’s largest private equity commitments are a $300 million stake in the 2016-vintage Tiger Iron Old Line Fund and a $300 million interest in the 2016-vintage Lexington Co-Investment Partners IV vehicle, the RFI shows. Its largest private credit stake is a $150 million commitment to the 2017-vintage Castlelake V, while its biggest real estate interest is a $150 million stake in the 2011-vintage Lone Star Real Estate Fund II.

Pension funds were the second most active type of sellers in the first half of this year, accounting for 23.2 percent of volume, according to Setter Capital’s Volume Report H1 2018. North American sellers were the most active regional group, accounting for 61 percent of sales.

A spokesman for Maryland SRPS confirmed the pension has selected Evercore as its advisor and declined to comment further. Evercore declined to comment.

– Updated with Maryland SRPS spokesman’s confirmation.