PSERS seeks private markets consultant

Pennsylvania’s Public School Employees’ Retirement System (PSERS), the US’s 14th largest defined benefit pension, is searching for a consultant to help it with private markets investments, including secondaries.

The $50 billion US pension wants to engage a contractor or contractors to provide non-discretionary private markets investment consulting services across strategies, including secondaries, co-investments, private equity and venture capital, according to a request for proposals document issued.

Interested consultants must outline their views on public pensions making secondaries sales from their private markets portfolios and be able to summarise any experience they have on advising clients on such sales, among other requirements, the RFP notes.

PSERS’ private equity, venture capital, special situations portfolio represents around 16 percent of total assets, including around $8 billion in net asset value and around $4 billion of unfunded commitments invested across 77 managers, according to the RFP.

Proposals are due by 20 April.

PSERS has used the secondaries market to dispose of large portfolios of stakes. In 2014 it brought a portfolio of 20 stakes worth around $2 billion to market, with Goldman Sachs Asset Management and DB Private Equity picking up the bundle, and in April 2015 the pension authorised a sale of select limited partnership interests in private market funds.

PSERS has committed at least $700 million to dedicated secondaries funds since 2011, including vehicles managed by Coller Capital, Strategic Partners, Lexington Partners and Partners Group, according to PEI data.