The New York State Common Retirement Fund has committed $50 million to a private equity fund managed by Hamilton Lane aimed at supporting small businesses across New York, State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli, trustee of the Fund, announced today.

“The state pension fund continues to help New York’s small businesses expand and excel,” DiNapoli said. “We’ve joined with major banks to provide the financing New York’s start-up companies need to grow their businesses. These investments aim to generate returns for the pension fund, while helping to boost our state’s economy and businesses that call New York home.”

The state pension fund’s $50 million commitment provided the anchor investment in the New York Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) Fund II L.P., managed by Hamilton Lane. The SBIC Fund II has approximately $150 million in total committed capital to support small businesses throughout the state. Six regional and national banks have also committed to the fund, which is now positioned to make its first investments.

The SBIC Fund II was launched in 2022 and is built upon the success of Hamilton Lane’s first SBIC offering, the New York SBIC Fund I, launched in 2015, also with an investment of $50 million from the pension fund.

The fund will provide credit, mezzanine, and equity investments to small businesses based in New York or with significant operations in the state. The fund, managed under the SBIC program established by the US Small Business Administration, will invest in businesses across a variety of industries, including manufacturing, business services, healthcare, technology, and broader industrials.

The New York SBIC Fund II fund investment is part of DiNapoli’s broader In-State Private Equity Investment Program. The pension fund has invested over $1.7 billion in more than 500 companies over the past 20 years. It is one of the largest and longest running of any home state focused pension investment program in the United States.

As of March 31, 2023, the In-State program has returned more than $1.8 billion on $1 billion invested in 292 exited transactions.

About the New York State Common Retirement Fund

The New York State Common Retirement Fund is one of the largest public pension funds in the United States. The Fund holds and invests the assets of the New York State and Local Retirement System on behalf of more than one million state and local government employees and retirees and their beneficiaries. It has consistently been ranked as one of the best managed and best funded plans in the nation.