Four active Future Fund mandates come to light

The $61.5 billion Future Fund has committed to three private equity funds managers, and awarded its first active global equities mandate, to Lazard Asset Management.

The Lazard mandate joins what are understood to be enhanced passive mandates with Vanguard Investments and State Street Global Advisors in the Fund’s $9 billion-plus global equities portfolio. The Future Fund would not elaborate on any of the new mandates, but industry sources said Lazard had probably been hired for its top-quartile Global Thematic offering. Meanwhile, it is known that $100 million has been committed to Advent International Corporation, a global mid-market buyout manager which in April closed its sixth fund at US$10.4 billion of commitments. Two further Future Fund commitments, speculated to be of a similar size, have been made to Oaktree Capital Management, a Los Angeles-based manager of special-situations private equity which utilises distressed debt capabilities; and to Horsley Bridge Partners, a San Franciscan venture capital fund-of-funds manager. It is understood the Future Fund’s investment director for private markets, Steve Byrom, travelled to meet all of the private equity managers. It is understood the Fund has had some assistance from Wilshire Associates in building its private equity program.