La Caisse bolsters US private equity ranks with new hire

La Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec has hired Sanjay Gupta for a newly created position of senior director in its private equity team in New York, a spokesman for La Caisse confirmed with Private Equity International.

Prior to joining La Caisse, Gupta led the US buyout investment operations at Swiss private equity group Adveq in its New York office, where he was executive director. While at Adveq Gupta led the firm's Opportunity program, which focuses on small cap buyouts and turnaround investments in the US.

Gupta's hire follows the appointment in May 2014 of former Eton Park Capital Management senior managing director Andreas Beroutsos as an executive vice president in private equity. Beroutsos manages all of La Caisse's private equity and infrastructure investments outside of Quebec and sits on La Caisse's executive committee and investment-risk committee.

Over the last five years, La Caisse has deployed $7.7 billion into private equity funds and $4.4 billion to direct investments, according to PEI Research & Analytics.

La Caisse, which placed ninth on Private Equity International's survey of the biggest LP investors, is planning to increase its private equity allocation from $12 billion to $14 billion annually.