Fundraising

Chicago Teachers’ seeks infra investment manager

The RFI for infra investment managers focusing on Chicago is the latest development at the pension fund, which recently named a new executive director and is in the process of seeking a new CIO.

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The Chicago Teachers' Pension Fund (CTPF) is inviting investment managers focusing on infrastructure investment in Chicago or the greater Chicago area to respond to a Request for Information (RFI) the public pension fund recently issued.

“The RFI is strictly for the purpose of gaining knowledge of services and providers available and should not be construed as a commitment or promise to acquire services or solutions offered by any of the respondents,” the pension fund said through a spokesperson in response to whether an infrastructure investment manager is sought to replace JP Morgan Asset Management and Macquarie, the two firms already managing the pension fund's infrastructure portfolio.

The pension fund has a target allocation of 3 percent to the asset class. As of December 31, 2014, $238.6 million had been committed to infastructure, accounting for about 2.4 percent of its overall portfolio.

The RFI comes just days after the $10.8 billion pension fund announced the appointment of a new executive director. Charles Burbridge, most recently chief financial officer of the Atlanta Public Schools, will assume his new position on March 16.

He succeeds Kevin Huber who left the fund on December 31, 2014. “Kevin Huber was on medical leave and he decided that stepping down as executive director of the fund was the best decision for him and his family,” CTPF told Infrastructure Investor, explaining the change in leadership.

Another significant personnel change occurred last November when CTPF's chief investment officer Carmen Heredia-Lopez left the pension fund to serve as investment director at the WK Kellogg Foundation.

Neither her departure nor the appointment of a new executive director are related or part of a broader reorganisation, CTPF said through a spokesperson.

The fund is in the process of finding a new CIO, while the deadline for responses to the RFI is March 20, 2015.

Established in 1895, the Chicago Teachers' Pension Fund provides retirement, survivor, and disability benefits for certain certified teachers and employees of Chicago public schools.