An investment company in Georgia has filed for bankruptcy protection after an audit of its pension plan found that the money it is owed from its investments in health care and other non-for-profit entities has not been paid in years.
The Georgia Retirement Fund and other funds have been struggling for years, as the state’s finances have become increasingly precarious, particularly after years of declining revenues, according to the state Retirement Commission.
The pension fund for the State of Georgia was established in 1984.
Its $7.5 billion portfolio consists of $2.2 billion in bonds and $1.4 billion in mutual funds, according the agency.
The state pension fund’s $4 billion of investments were purchased in 2000 and 2003 by a partnership of General Electric Co. and GE Capital Management LLC, which were later sold to an investment firm, General Catalyst Partners.
The funds are managed by the State Retirement Fund, the agency said.
“Investments in the Georgia Retirement Funds have been subject to a number of adverse events over the years,” the retirement commission said in a statement.
The commission also said that in 2013, the state pension funds assets fell to $2 billion.
That year, the commission said it was unable to determine the extent of the losses in terms of total liabilities, as required by law.
In 2017, the retirement commissions audit of the funds’ investment portfolio found that $1 billion in assets had been lost and $800 million in assets were not allocated to the retirement funds.
In an attempt to address the problem, the agencies in 2018 recommended that General Catalyst and GE buy back their investments.
GE Capital Partners agreed to buy the bonds in exchange for a reduction in the retirement investment.
However, the AGC said it has not received any further action from the AGCs office.
The GA Retirement Commission said it will continue to pursue the necessary remedies to restore the funds to their former value.
The agency said it had already issued a notice to GE Capital that it was withdrawing from the investment portfolio of the Georgia Pension Fund.GE Capital said it did not have a comment.GE said it would continue to work with the AG’s office to resolve this issue.
