A large industry fund made a number of changes to its manager line up in the June quarter, awarding two structured credit mandates worth a total $225 million and terminating a $350 mandate with an absolute returns manager.

The $14 billion Retail Employees Superannuation Trust (REST) invested $150 million with Babson Capital Management and $75 million with The Putnam Advisory Company, and redeemed its $350 million investment in the Mesirow Absolute Return Fund.

The $2.2 billion Media Super also recently redeemed a $15 million allocation to the Mesirow hedge fund of fund offered in

Australia by Warakirri following a review of its hedge fund program.  

Approximately $150 million of the proceeds from Mesirow were reinvested with the fund’s existing absolute returns managers, GMO Australia and Fauchier Partners, with the remaining $200 million retained in cash.

Damian Hill, chief executive office of REST, said the investments continued the fund’s program of targeting structured credit securities and presented the prospect for attractive, equity-like returns for members over a three to five year investment timeframe.  

“Consistent with REST’s investment philosophy, these investments are being undertaken as part of a diversified portfolio of exposures to the credit markets within the growth alternatives sector,” he said.

REST added the growth alternatives sub-asset class to its portfolio in the first quarter, awarding credit mandates worth a total $350 million to Credit Suisse’s Syndicated Loan Fund and

Stone Tower’s Offshore Credit Fund.

The funding for the Babson and Putnam
mandates came from REST’s cash flow.