Blackstone bolsters fundraising team(3)

The Blackstone Group has appointed Michael Casey as a managing director in the firm’s limited partner relations and fund placement group. He will be tasked with raising capital for Blackstone’s private investment funds; its current private equity fund had raised more than $18.1 billion as of March 2007.

Formerly president of Cliffwood Partners, Casey was responsible for capital raising and investor relations, as well as new product development, at the Los Angeles-based property firm. He was also a member of the firm’s investment committee.

Prior to joining Cliffwood, Casey was managing director and senior portfolio manager at Chicago’s Heitman Capital Management, where he also served on the firm’s investment and management committees. Prior to Heitman, Casey spent twelve years with JMB Realty.

Casey received a BBA in real estate and finance in 1980 and an MBA in real estate in 1983 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.