Blackstone wins $200m from Oregon for new fund

The commitment, the pension's first to Blackstone, was voted on at a meeting of the Oregon Investment Council in Tigard, Oregon. Blackstone, based in New York, said last week it probably will raise about $13.5bn for the fund, called Blackstone Capital Partners VI.

Blackstone president Tony James told the Oregon meeting that his firm had agreed to a "special fee structure" for Oregon, which will be offered to other investors. Neither he nor state officials detailed the arrangement on the new fund, which is about 40% smaller than Blackstone's previous $21.7bn Fund V from 2007.

The Oregon Investment Council, which oversees about $65bn in retirement accounts for state workers, also voted to invest in Angelo, Gordon's $600m Asia Realty Fund II. Most of the fund's investments will be in China, while Japan will get about 30% and South Korea 10 to 15%, said Keith Barket, senior managing director for Angelo, Gordon.

"In the next 20 years, emerging markets will outpace world growth and the U.S. will underperform," Barket told the council during a meeting in Tigard, Oregon. China is "in the early stages of its growth," and offers more profitable opportunities for real estate development than the US does, he said.

Oregon's investment will come from the state Public Employees Retirement Fund, the largest pool the council oversees.

Angelo, Gordon runs $23bn of investments in fixed income, real estate, buyout and hedge funds and has invested in Asia since 2005.

The New York-based firm's first Asia fund, a $526m vehicle, put about 85% of its capital in China and 15% in South Korea, Barket said. The firm uses about 30% debt to finance its properties in the region.