LACERA to hire professional to oversee $13B PE portfolio

The Los Angeles County Employees Retirement Association plans to hire an investment officer to oversee its $13 billion private equity portfolio. It’s one of several plum pension positions that have opened up on the West Coast in recent months.


LACERA Principal Investment Officer Christopher Wagner told Private Equity Career News this week that the PE role is a new one and that he will serve as a supervisor. News of the search comes just as David Simpson retires as a PE investment officer after nearly 12 years at the roughly $80 billion pension fund. Simpson said he was not yet able to discuss his next venture.

Look for more details on the position to be posted later this month on LACERA’s Web site. It is certain to be a highly sought-after role:

PE Portfolio: LACERA has one of the largest PE portfolios in the country, with exposure to small buyout, mid-sized buyout, large/global buyout, growth equity, venture capital and funds of funds via dozen of fund managers. Private equity at LACERA sits within a “growth” portfolio that also includes global equities and non-core private real estate. At $41.7 billion the growth portfolio rests just below its 53 percent target allocation. With the growth portfolio, the private equity portfolio sits at 1 percentage point below its 32 percent target allocation.

The Team: Chief Investment Officer Jonathan Grabel leads an investment team at LACERA that includes a deputy chief investment officer as well as a number of principal investment officers, senior investment officers and investment officers. For outside advice the team looks to equity consultant StepStone Group, general consultant Meketa Investment Group, and illiquid credit, real assets and hedge funds consultant Albourne.

West Coast Roles: Other West Coast pension positions that have recently opened up include the following:

  • Private equity investment director at the California Public Employees’ Retirement System in Sacramento County.
  • Direct investments-focused investment officer at the California State Teachers’ Retirement System in Yolo County.
  • Investments operations manager at the Oregon State Treasury’s Tigard office​. (Applications are due by Oct. 27, 2024.)
  • Fixed income investment officer at the Washington State Investment Board.