Key Takeaways
- • Iris Zhao-Fiorello was hired as head of private equity and Neil Madsen as head of real estate for the New Jersey Division of Investment, which manages the $87.3 billion New Jersey Pension Fund; both started work Nov. 2, 2026.
- • Zhao-Fiorello previously was head of capital formation and investment solutions at Castleforge, a U.K.-based real estate investment firm, and spent more than 15 years at GCM Grosvenor, where she was a managing director in private equity.
- • Madsen was founding partner of Madsen Advisors and a board director of Fife Capital from 2011 to 2025.
- • The private equity target is 11% against a 9.44% first-quarter allocation, and the real estate target is 7% against 5.84%; the real assets head post remains vacant.
Summary
The New Jersey Division of Investment has hired Iris Zhao-Fiorello as head of private equity and Neil Madsen as head of real estate, according to a Pensions & Investments report and a Nov. 4 news release from the division. The division oversees the $87.3 billion New Jersey Pension Fund in Trenton. Both began work on Nov. 2, filling positions open since July 2025, when former private equity head Dana Johns left the division and former real estate head Kevin Higgins retired.
Shoaib Khan, the pension fund's CIO and director of the Division of Investment, said in the release that both hires are "experts in their respective asset classes." Zhao-Fiorello had been head of capital formation and investment solutions at Castleforge, a U.K.-based real estate investment firm, where she sat on the senior management team and risk committee. Before that she spent more than 15 years at GCM Grosvenor as a managing director in private equity. Madsen had been founding partner of Madsen Advisors, a real estate strategy and investment firm, and served as a board director of Fife Capital from 2011 to 2025.
Until the searches concluded, Khan and other division members had been supervising the private equity, real estate and real assets units. The real assets head position remains open following the July 2025 departure of Niraj Agarwal, who joined Fidelity Investments as a portfolio manager in October 2025. In August 2026 Khan said the division was seeking four senior managers for private markets and fixed income, with applications due Aug. 21; no timetable was announced.
According to the latest data (Sept. 30), the private equity target is 11% and the first-quarter allocation was 9.44%. Private equity returned 8.72% net for the fiscal year ended June 30, ahead of a 7.54% benchmark, driven by co-investments, diversified and early-stage venture capital, and secondaries. For the current fiscal year, the division is focusing on small to midsize buyouts, sector-specific investments and secondary strategies, while noting that fundraising remains challenging.
The real estate target is 7% and the first-quarter allocation was 5.84%. The portfolio returned 6.6% net for the fiscal year against a 3.1% benchmark, led by public REITs (41% of assets, 13% return); private real estate returned 2.59%. The division predicted that "private real estate fund valuations will likely decline should treasury yields remain elevated." Other targets include real assets at 4% (2.94% allocated), private credit at 9% (7.08%) and risk mitigation at 3.5% (2.98%).
Shoaib Khan, the pension fund's CIO and director of the Division of Investment, said in the release that both hires are "experts in their respective asset classes." Zhao-Fiorello had been head of capital formation and investment solutions at Castleforge, a U.K.-based real estate investment firm, where she sat on the senior management team and risk committee. Before that she spent more than 15 years at GCM Grosvenor as a managing director in private equity. Madsen had been founding partner of Madsen Advisors, a real estate strategy and investment firm, and served as a board director of Fife Capital from 2011 to 2025.
Until the searches concluded, Khan and other division members had been supervising the private equity, real estate and real assets units. The real assets head position remains open following the July 2025 departure of Niraj Agarwal, who joined Fidelity Investments as a portfolio manager in October 2025. In August 2026 Khan said the division was seeking four senior managers for private markets and fixed income, with applications due Aug. 21; no timetable was announced.
According to the latest data (Sept. 30), the private equity target is 11% and the first-quarter allocation was 9.44%. Private equity returned 8.72% net for the fiscal year ended June 30, ahead of a 7.54% benchmark, driven by co-investments, diversified and early-stage venture capital, and secondaries. For the current fiscal year, the division is focusing on small to midsize buyouts, sector-specific investments and secondary strategies, while noting that fundraising remains challenging.
The real estate target is 7% and the first-quarter allocation was 5.84%. The portfolio returned 6.6% net for the fiscal year against a 3.1% benchmark, led by public REITs (41% of assets, 13% return); private real estate returned 2.59%. The division predicted that "private real estate fund valuations will likely decline should treasury yields remain elevated." Other targets include real assets at 4% (2.94% allocated), private credit at 9% (7.08%) and risk mitigation at 3.5% (2.98%).
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