Teacher Retirement System of Texas is overhauling its private markets approach, shifting from the traditional closed-end fund model toward evergreen structures and direct, long-duration ownership. Managing director Ashley Baum described the aim as owning companies across their entire lifecycle rather than rotating out with each successive fund. The shift follows TRS's reduction of its private equity allocation from 14% to 12% in 2024, a period during which the asset class returned roughly 8.5% net against approximately 19% for public equity. 

Among other allocators, City of Fresno Retirement Systems is set to consider an infrastructure pacing plan calling for roughly $60M in new commitments in 2026 toward a 7% target allocation; Fresno County Employees Retirement Association approved Acadian Asset Management and Strategic Global Advisors as finalists for a developed international small-cap equity mandate, and separately initiated an RFQ for a search consultant; and Oakland County Employees' Retirement approved interviews with Boston Partners and DeRoy & Devereaux for an all-cap/large-cap value equity mandate and added Lazard Global to its investment lineup.

On the GP side, Energy Capital Partners is reportedly approaching a summer final close on for ECP VI after raising $4.8B toward a $5B target – having launched less than 18 months ago. Elsewhere, Verdane closed a €635M multi-asset continuation vehicle with Coller Capital as sole lead investor and StepStone as co-underwriter, and SPARX Group established Mirai Creation Fund IV, a Japan-based fund targeting ¥100B ($636M) by March 2027, with Toyota Motor, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking, MUFG Bank, and Mizuho Bank as seed LPs.

In leadership news, Greg Samorajski resigned as CEO of the Iowa Public Employees' Retirement System following a period of administrative leave, with general counsel Elizabeth Hennessey serving as acting CEO during a nationwide search; and Malaysia's public sector pension KWAP appointed former chief executive of Bank Simpanan Nasional Jay Khairil Jeremy Abdullah as CEO.

Read on for all the day’s headlines.

April was another active month across private markets.

Dakota tracked 1,717 transactions and $271B in deal value, with large-scale acquisitions driving activity across industrials, technology, and energy.

On the fundraising side, the market set records.

KKR raised $23B for North America buyouts, EQT closed $15.6B for Asia-Pacific, and private credit vehicles from Blackstone and Ares surpassed expectations.

The takeaway isn’t just volume. It’s breadth.

Dakota’s latest Private Markets Review captures how capital is being deployed across strategies, sectors, and geographies.

Download the report →

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