Oregon Public Employees Pension Fund Recognized as Top-Performing Fund Since 1997

The Oregon Investment Council (OIC) held its regular meeting on May 27, where it received a first-quarter performance update for the Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund (OPERF) and conducted annual reviews from calendar year 2025 of OPERF's Real Estate and Real Assets portfolios, both delivering earnings above their respective portfolio benchmarks.

Consultants from Meketa recognized OPERF as the top performing fund among pension plan peers whose portfolios are larger than $5 billion since current performance tracking went into effect (1997), returning 7.7% for the period from July 1997 to March 31, 2026. The peer ranking report released by Invest Metrics factors in performance data for tax-exempt pension plans across the country.

"Treasury is focused on delivering long-term growth for Oregon's public employees and all the state residents who depend on the services they provide. This recognition underscores how Treasury has stayed true to that strategy to the benefit of our state," said Oregon State Treasurer Elizabeth Steiner, MD.

During the quarterly review, for the period January 1-March 31, staff and consultants reported OPERF returned 0.6%. In a period of weaker public equity markets and escalating international conflicts, the Fund's diversified investment strategy modestly supported quarterly performance with five (5) of seven (7) portfolios generating positive returns.

The Council also reviewed 2025 performance for OPERF's Real Estate and Real Assets portfolios, whose strategic roles within the Fund are to provide diversification opportunities and some inflation protection. Highlights from the review for the 1-year period ending December 31, 2025, include:
• The Real Estate portfolio returned 4.0% and Real Assets portfolio returned 10.7%, both outperforming their respective policy benchmarks.
• Real Estate portfolio performance has been strong across short- and long-term time periods, outperforming portfolio benchmarks over 1-, 5-, and 10-year periods, generating consistent, resilient income returns in varying market environments.
• The Real Assets portfolio's $1.6 billion in distributions were the highest calendar year distributions amount in the portfolio's history, providing $300 million in net distribution proceeds after accounting for investment contributions made.
• Within the Real Assets portfolio, evolving exposure to diverse long-term investment opportunities led to a rise in renewable energy investments and robust returns within the portfolio.

As part of the ongoing routine asset-liability study, consultants presented baseline asset-liability model results from 10,000 20-year performance scenarios based on the current policy portfolio. These results, and previously completed analysis, will help consultants and staff refine portfolio allocation options for consideration by the Council.

Other agenda items included updates on new investment commitments from Chief Investment Officer Rex Kim and time for public comment.

The OIC is a six-member board responsible for setting investment policy for OPERF and other state investment funds. Four members are appointed by the governor. The state treasurer and the director of the Public Employees Retirement System serve by position.

The next OIC meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, July 15, 2026.