New Jersey Treasury appoints two new investment leaders for private equity and real estate
TRENTON, N.J. — The New Jersey Department of the Treasury’s Division of Investment has announced the appointment of two new asset class heads, bringing decades of experience in private equity and real estate investment management to the division.
Iris Zhao-Fiorello has been named head of private equity, while Neil Madsen has been appointed head of real estate. Both began their new roles Monday, Nov. 2, according to the Treasury Department.
“We are extremely happy to welcome both Iris and Neil to the Division of Investment,” said Shoaib Khan, Chief Investment Officer and Director of the Division of Investment. “Both are experts in their respective asset classes and both bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to the Division.”
Zhao-Fiorello brings more than 20 years of global institutional experience in investment management and capital formation. Before joining the division, she served as head of capital formation and investment solutions at Castleforge, where she was a member of the senior management team and the firm’s Risk Committee.
She previously spent more than 15 years at GCM Grosvenor, serving as a managing director in private equity. Zhao-Fiorello earned a Bachelor of Science degree from New York University’s Stern School of Business and attended the Senior Executive Leadership Program at Stanford University’s Rock Center for Corporate Governance.
Madsen joins the division with 35 years of institutional real estate experience. He previously served as founding partner at Madsen Advisors, where he developed, recommended and executed real estate strategies and long-term investment plans.
From 2011 to 2025, Madsen served as a board director for Fife Capital. Before that, he was executive vice president and head of real estate private equity at AEGON Asset Management.
In addition to his investment management experience, Madsen serves as an adjunct professor at the Fordham University Real Estate Institute and previously taught as an adjunct professor at New York University’s Schack Institute of Real Estate.
He holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the Wheaton College Conservatory of Music and a Master of Science degree in real estate valuation and analysis from New York University.
The appointments place Zhao-Fiorello and Madsen in leadership roles overseeing their respective investment asset classes within the New Jersey Division of Investment.
