Steuerberaterversorgungswerk Schleswig-Holstein

The fund's two managing directors, Knut Henze and Matthias Schulz-Engel, both trained lawyers, handle operational management including investment execution. Strategic oversight rests with Chairman Ronald Benke and the board, whose members — like Marieke Pohl — are practicing tax advisors familiar with the liabilities the fund must cover. The advisory board (Beirat) includes Frauke Hegemann of Nord-Ostsee Sparkasse and long-serving auditor Prof. Dr. Mirja Steinkamp.

Deal flow arrives through several channels unique to Germany's professional pension system. The fund participates in the Rundgespräch der Steuerberaterversorgungswerke, a coordination group where six state-level tax advisor funds share due diligence and co-invest in private market vehicles. Membership in ABV, the national association of 89 professional pension schemes, provides additional institutional access, while the fund's closed ties to the Steuerberaterkammer Schleswig-Holstein surface tax-advantaged real estate structures common in the region.

It is a statutory pension fund (berufsständisches Versorgungswerk), not a family office. Membership is compulsory for tax advisors and tax agents licensed in Schleswig-Holstein, governed by state law. This makes it closer to a defined-benefit public pension scheme than a discretionary wealth vehicle — contributions are set by regulation, and payouts follow actuarial formulas.

Confirmed exposures include direct and indirect real estate — via vehicles like NW Deutschland 8, a closed-end residential fund, and the Verius Real Estate Finance Fund covering German and Luxembourg mixed-use assets — plus growth capital through a general investment portfolio based in Kiel. While its full asset-class breakdown remains undisclosed, German professional pension funds typically allocate to fixed income, real estate, private equity and infrastructure, with limited public equity volatility.

Yes. Through the Rundgespräch der Steuerberaterversorgungswerke, it pools expertise and capital with peer funds from Baden-Württemberg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saarland. This structure effectively functions as an internal club for shared commitments to real estate and private equity funds, reducing due-diligence costs for smaller state-level schemes.

The Chamber of Tax Advisors (Steuerberaterkammer) is the regulatory body that licenses tax advisors in the state; the pension fund is a legally separate but functionally adjacent entity — all chamber members are required to participate. Board members often hold chamber leadership roles, and the two bodies share a focus on the profession's long-term economic security, with the chamber acting as a business partner rather than a direct parent.

Governance is self-administered by members of the profession it serves. The board includes working tax advisors who answer to the state regulatory framework for liberal professions, not to corporate shareholders or union trustees. Advisory board members like Nord-Ostsee Sparkasse's CEO add regional banking perspective. This practitioner-led model means asset allocation must satisfy peer reviewers who understand the liability structure intimately — it deprioritizes short-term mark-to-market performance in favor of long-duration yield.