Treasurer Wooden Announces More Than $250 In Commitments

Press release from the Office of the State Treasurer:

Jan. 13, 2021

At today’s Investment Advisory Council (IAC) meeting, Connecticut State Treasurer Shawn T. Wooden announced his decision to commit $125 million to the K5 Private Investors Fund and 100 million euros or approximately $133 million to the Livingbridge 7 Fund.

“In Connecticut, we are fortunate to be well positioned to continue to make key investments that represent attractive opportunities for the Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust Funds,” said Treasurer Shawn Wooden. “In 2021 and beyond, it remains imperative for us to continue to stay the course, and invest successfully for the benefit of Connecticut’s future by sticking to a disciplined long-term investment strategy of deploying capital in the private markets.”

Treasurer Wooden presented an infrastructure investment opportunity: Grain Communications Opportunity Fund III, L.P. (GCOF III) and the Grain – State of Connecticut Co-Investment Partnership. These allocations would provide the Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust Funds (the “CRPTF”) with the opportunity to invest in a strategy with the potential to generate strong returns while providing inflation and downside protection acquiring assets in the telecommunications industry. An investment in GCOF III is consistent with the Office of the Treasurer’s asset class strategic plan to maintain steady commitments to the real assets sector and to diversify the portfolio.

Treasurer Wooden also presented two private equity opportunities to the IAC: The Insight Partners Opportunities Fund I, L.P. (Insight Opportunities I) which focuses on structured equity and debt investments in software companies, and the One Rock Capital Partners Fund III (One Rock III) which focuses on control oriented investments in middle market, North American companies. These potential commitments represent attractive opportunities for the CRPTF, as Insight Opportunities I is expected to provide attractive risk adjusted returns through a combination of downside protection and upside potential, and One Rock III seeks to drive value creation and attractive investment returns through the implementation of proven operational improvements and strategic repositioning practices.

“A commitment to Insight Opportunities I would provide the CRPTF with investment in a differentiated strategy executed by one of the top performing managers focused on the software sector,” Treasurer Shawn Wooden continued. “A commitment to One Rock III would present the CRPTF with the opportunity to partner with a private equity manager that has demonstrated success investing in complex, value-oriented transactions that would add value to the CRPTF.”

Treasurer Wooden also announced the upcoming departure of Chief Investment Officer Laurie Martin, effective Friday, January 15, 2020. Ms. Martin has accepted a new opportunity. A national search for the next Chief Investment Officer has been initiated. Steven Meier, Assistant Treasurer and Senior Principal Investment Officer at the Office of the Treasurer will serve as Interim Chief Investment Officer until a permanent successor is named.

“Laurie has played an integral role at the Office of the Treasurer, and has been invaluable to Connecticut in diligently managing the CRPTF,” Treasurer Wooden said. “I thank her for her years of dedicated service to the State of Connecticut and wish her well with her new opportunity. We are fortunate to have such an experienced investment professional in Steven Meier, Assistant Treasurer and Senior Principal Investment Officer, who will take over as Interim Chief Investment Officer.”

“I've accepted a new opportunity that will allow me to transition back to healthcare finance in my home state of Massachusetts and be closer to my family,” said Laurie Martin, Chief Investment Officer at the Office of the Treasurer. "I sincerely appreciate the opportunity to have served the State of Connecticut and have enjoyed my time at the Office of the Treasurer. I want to thank Treasurer Wooden, and my colleagues for the support, guidance, and encouragement they provided me during my time here."

This press release was produced by the Office of the State Treasurer. The views expressed here are the author's own.