Matt Levin

The Oregon Investment Council has committed $100m to Riverstone/Carlyle Renewable & Alternative Energy Fund II and $200m to Alinda’s latest infrastructure vehicle.

The publicly listed fund of funds is now trading at almost a 50 percent discount to NAV. In a statement, the fund says it is “hopeful” that a deal for Lehman’s asset management and alternatives units “will be made within a very short period of time”.

HighView Investment Group, led by former BlackRock co-founder Ralph Schlosstein, has garnered $600m in commitments to target minority interests in independent alternative asset managers, including real estate.

Former Sun Life Financial Canada president Robert Astley will succeed longtime director Gail Cook-Bennett as head of the C$128bn Canadian pension's in-house investment arm.

A blank cheque company sponsored by a Japanese consortium has agreed to acquire Senoko Power from the sovereign wealth fund.

Institutional investors are ramping up their commitments to distressed debt funds, but which asset class they fit into becomes complex when those commitments end up in credit vehicles raised by traditional buyout firms, according to CalSTRS CIO Chris Ailman.

BlueOrchard Private Equity, halfway to its fundraising target of $220m, will invest in partnerships with microfinance organisations throughout the developing world.

The Los Angeles-based buyout shop has sold floral delivery business FTD Group to United Online for roughly $754m in cash and stock, four years after purchasing the business in a $422m take-private. The deal value is roughly $46 million below the original announced purchased price.

The Southern California plant nursery operator, partly owned by CalSTRS, has selected turnaround specialist Black Diamond as its stalking horse bidder. Hines has also secured $62 million in debtor in possession financing from its lenders, which include Cerberus-owned GMAC Commercial Finance.

The Australian infrastructure pioneer has unveiled a major management overhaul as its share price continues to decline. Firm founder Jim Babcock and long-time chief executive Phil Green will be replaced by in-house executives.