Click here for printer friendly page

Funds: July 2003

Permira raises E3bn for first close, Terra Firma delays final close, Mezzanine Management closes Central European fund, Lexington closes $2bn secondaries fund, The Edgewater Funds holds final close, Cerberus launches $1bn distressed debt fund, Ironside Ventures launches second fund…

Europe

UK Inflexion announces first close at E50m
UK private equity firm Inflexion has announced the first close of its second fund, Inflexion Private Equity Fund 2 with commitments of E50m. The fund will invest in buy-outs at the smaller end of the UK mid-market and is targeting in the region of E100m. The fund's parent company committed E10m to the fund. Inflexion Private Equity 2 also received commitments from Martin Currie, Nordea Pension, London Merchant Securities and the fund's own management team.
AltAssets 23.7.03

US Hicks Muse sets out raising European fund without setting a target
US buy-out firm Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst has set out raising a European fund without setting a specific target. The strategy appears to break with an established tradition, albeit one that has become increasingly awkward for funds struggling to attract capital in difficult market conditions. A spokesman for the firm indicated that management would release a target once fundraising was underway.
Bloomberg News 29.7.03

Pan-European buy-out fund Permira reaches first close on third fund at over E3bn
Permira, the UK-based pan-European buy-out firm, has announced a speedy first close on its third European buy-out fund at over E3bn. Just four months after launching, the fund now looks comfortably on track to hit and possibly exceed its E4.5bn target, which would make it the second largest European private equity fund ever raised. The Permira Europe III fund has so far attracted 65 investors. Half of these are investors are European, 40 per cent are from the US and ten per cent are from Asia.
AltAssets 24.7.03

UK Terra Firma delays final close
Guy Hands' Terra Firma is to delay the final close of its buy-out mega-fund by seven months. The decision comes after Hands admitted that his debut independent fund might have to settle for a close significantly below its original E3bn target earlier in the year. The fund was originally due to close by June but the deadline has been extended to 31 January 2004.
Financial Times 7.7.03

LCF Rothschild holds first close on French mid-market buy-out fund
LCF Rothschild Capital Partners, a private equity firm sponsored by Edmond de Rothschild Group, has held a first close on its debut fund. The mid-market French buy-out fund has received E87m of commitments. The Edmond de Rothschild LBO fund was launched in October last year and is targeting E200m. The level of commitments secured at the first close is well above expectations, the firm said in a statement.
AltAssets 30.7.03

UK Cabot Square Capital closes second fund at E384m
UK-based Cabot Square Capital has announced the final closing of CS Capital Partners II at E284m. The fund has exceeded its original target of E250m. It received commitments from a broad range of institutional investors, including strong participation from university foundations and endowment funds in the US.
AltAssets 4.7.03

AXA Private Equity holds first close for secondaries fund of funds
Paris-based AXA Private Equity will target a large portion of its latest fund of funds in secondaries. The E250m fund raised E120m at its first close this month, and will target early secondary positions.
Real Deals 17.7.03

Central and Eastern Europe

Baring Private Equity Partners to launch new fund for Central Europe
Baring Private Equity Partners is planning to launch a new fund for the Central European region. The fund will invest between E10m and E25m in mid-market, old-economy firms in Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania and the Czech and Slovak Republics. It will aim to raise two to three times the amount of its previous E86m fund which held a final close in 2001.
Private Equity Online 17.7.03

Mezzanine Management holds final close for Central European fund on E115m
Mezzanine Management has held a final close for its pioneering Central European fund on E115m. Accession Mezzanine Management (AMC) secured commitments from 13 institutional investors, with just over a third of the capital sourced from Austria. The fund will focus on buy-out investments and development capital financings led by a private equity sponsor. AMC does not have a sector focus and ‘will typically invest in mature businesses with strong and stable cash flows'. Average investment size is expected to be between E5m and E15m in deals with transaction sizes up to E200m.
AltAssets 14.7.03

US SigmaBleyzer to launch $100m fund for South East Europe accession states
The Ukraine-based US fund manager SigmaBleyzer is to launch a $100m private equity fund to invest in South East European accession states ahead of their entry to the European Union in 2007. The fund will be launched next year. It will be raised in two $50m tranches and will target high-tech investments in sectors including telecoms and software development. The fund will also consider investments in tourism, processing industries and agricultural sectors.
AltAssets 8.7.03

US

Bear Stearns to launch fund with Rudolph Giuliani
US Bear Stearns Merchant Banking, the private equity unit of financial giant Bear Stearns, is to join forces with former New-York mayor Rudolph Giuliani. The merchant bank's joint venture with Giuliani Capital Partners will invest $300m of Bear Stearns' recent $1.5bn fund in private equity opportunities in the security and public-safety sectors. The new fund is already examining companies that have developed identification technologies and may invest in firms working on ways to idEntify biological and chemical agents.
AltAssets 31.7.03

Ballast Point Ventures closes above target
Ballast Point Ventures has closed its debut fund at $56m, exceeding the original target of $40m. The firm is sponsored by Raymond James Financial and South Atlantic Venture Funds and will invest in healthcare, communications and business services in the Atlantic states from Maryland to Florida and in Texas.
The Private Equity Analyst July 2003

Edison closes fifth fund
Edison Venture Fund V has reached a final close with commitments totalling $142m. The fund has already completed seven initial investments. Over 70 per cent of commitments to the fund came from seasoned Edison investors. Limited partners included Commerce Bank, JP Morgan Chase, Penn Mutual, Phoenix Life and State of Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation. Edison focuses on investments in the information technology sector, specialising in application software, financial services, communications, and electronic products.
AltAssets 23.7.03

Blue Sage Capital holds first close
Austin, Texas-based Blue Sage Capital has raised $125m for its debut fund. Investors include LBJ Holding Co, which makes private investments on behalf of the family office of the late Lyndon B Johnson of which Blue Sage Capital is an affiliate. New Mexico State Investment Council has also committed to the fund. The firm will invest in manufacturing, services, technology and distribution companies.
The Private Equity Analyst July 2003

Lexington Partners closes fund below target
Secondaries specialist Lexington Partners has finally closed its fifth fund with $2bn in commitments. The firm started marketing the fund in 2001 and has fallen short of its original target but has still succeeded in raising the second largest secondaries fund on record. The firm said it had reduced its target because price discounts on the sort of assets it buys are much steeper now than when it set out fundraising and it no longer needed such a big fund.
AltAssets 14.7.03

ITU Ventures closes third early-stage fund
ITU Ventures has closed its third fund on $36m. The new fund will continue the firm's strategy of partnering with universities to develop early-stage technology. Investors in the fund include Colorado PERA, New Mexico State Investment Council, Boeing and Storagetek. ITU Ventures closed its first fund in 2000 on $35.5m and its second fund on $11m.
Private Equity Central 9.7.03

Ontario Pension Services plans Canadian start-up fund
Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS) is planning to raise a fund to invest foreign capital into Canadian start-ups. OMERS is targeting $220m from limited partners outside Canada, specifically US investors who have overlooked the Canadian private equity market in the past.
Private Equity Week 14.7.03

Valhalla Partners holds first close on early stage technology fund
McLean, Virginia-based Valhalla Partners has held a first close at around $100m for its latest early-stage technology fund. The firm has not disclosed a final total but it is reported to be around $200m. The firm will focus on communications, networking, IT services, software and technology deals.
Private Equity Week 7.7.03

Rustic Canyon holds first close
Los Angeles-based Rustic Canyon Partners has held a first close at $130m for Rustic Canyon Ventures SBIC. In addition to its focus on companies based Southern California, the firm will also seek investment opportunities in the Pacific North West. The firm has also hired a new partner, Jon Staenberg, the founder of venture firm Staenberg Venture Funds. Staenberg will be based in Seattle and will source the Pacific North West opportunities.
VentureWire 21.7.03

SunTx Capital closes debut fund
Dallas-based SunTx Capital has closed its debut fund at $125m. The fund will invest in small manufacturing  and distribution businesses. Investors in the fund include University of Chicago, Cresecent Equity, Shell Netherlands Pension Fund. Bain & Co has also backed the fund and will provide advisory services.
The Private Equity Analyst July 2003

Southern Capitol Ventures closes debut fund
Research Triangle Park, North Carolina-based Southern Capitol Ventures has closed its debut fund at $4.5m. The early-stage venture firm focuses on technology and life sciences companies in the Research Triangle Park area. Investors in the fund include the North Carolina Biotechnology Center, a state funded biotechnology research and development organisation, and a group of undisclosed individuals.
VentureWire 21.7.03

Fossicker Management closes debut fund
Philadelphia-based Fossicker Management, a newly formed private equity firm has closed its first buy-out fund at $100m. Sage Capital Growth is the only limited partner in the fund in an effort to access the distressed lower middle market firms that Fossicker is targeting. The firm will look at under-performing companies generating annual sales of between $20m and $250m.
The Deal 18.7.03
 
The Edgewater Funds holds final close
Chicago-based The Edgewater Funds has closed its forth fund at $200m. Edgewater Private Equity Fund IV will make minority investments in profitable growing companies. Limited partners include University of Illinois and Pennsylvania School Employees' Retirement System. Edgewater invests in business products, business services, communications and IT companies.
The Private Equity Analyst July 2003

Ironside Ventures launches second fund
Waltham, Massachusetts-based Ironside Ventures is seeking $150m for its second fund, Ironside Ventures II. Ironside invests $5m to $8m per company in both first and later stage rounds. The firm has also recently hired Anthony M Abate, formerly of Battery Ventures.
The Private Equity Analyst July 2003

C&A owners to create E650m US buy-out fund
The Brenninkmeijer family, the owners of European clothing retailer C&A group, is to create an E650m US buy-out fund. The launch of the new fund represents an affirmation of the family's already considerable commitment to the private equity asset class.The Brenninkmeijer family's Bregal Holdings has already reportedly committed E650m to UK-based Englefield Capital earlier this year.
AltAssets 10.7.03

Lighthouse Capital Partners closes venture debt fund
California-based Lighthouse Capital Partners has closed its fifth venture debt fund at $366m, exceeding the $300m target. Investors re-upping in Lighthouse Capital Partners V include Dartmouth College, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Richmond. New investors include State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio, Hamilton Lane Advisors and Howard Hughes Medical Institute.
The Private Equity Analyst July 2003

Cerberus Capital Management launches distressed debt fund
New York-based Cerberus Capital Management has set out to raise $1bn for its third distressed debt fund. Cerberus closed two funds for a combined $1bn last summer and has since been actively investing in Asian and North American companies.
The Private Equity Analyst July 2003

Asia

Thai Government setting up venture fund
The Thai Government is creating a new venture capital fund to promote the development of small and medium-sized enterprises in the region. Target businesses must generate annual revenues of at least Baht 10m. The fund aims to improve the country's international competitiveness.
AVCJ 17.7.03

Africa

Aureos Capital targets $150m for African funds
Aureos Capital is targeting a combined total of $150m for its three African funds. The Aureos West Africa Fund is targeting $50m and has already raised half of its commitments. The Aureos Southern Africa Fund is targeting $60m and so far has $42.5m. The Aureos East Africa Fund has already reached its $40m target and was oversubscribed. Investors include CDC Group and Norfund.
Private Equity Week 21.7.03