The board of Oak Brook, the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund, has approved up to $555m in manager hires and commitments in the direct lending and credit funds space, according to a report by Pensions & Investments Online.
The report cites an email from spokeswoman Maureen O’Brochta as conforming the $49.5bn fund’s allocations, which include hiring Jefferies Financial Group to manage up to $125m in a direct lending separate account.
Commitments of up to $75m each to asset backed credit fund Crayhill Principal Strategies Fund III, direct lending fund MC Credit Fund IV, and event-driven vehicle Strategic Value Capital Solutions Fund II, have also been approved any the board.
In addition, the board has approved allocations of up to $50m each to distressed debt fund Alchemy Opportunities Fund V, direct lending funds AshGrove Specialty Lending Fund and MGG Structured Solutions Fund II, and Pemberton Strategic Credit Fund III.
In April, Oak Brook upped its long-term target allocation for alternative investments to 14% from 9.5%, with O’Brochta reportedly saying at the time that the scheme’s goal was to increase exposure to private credit funds over the next three years.
