Verdane Capital raising $200m ninth fund

A Form D filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on 27 July shows Verdane Capital IX registered with a total reported offering size of $200m and expecting to solicit investment in four states.

According to the form, Verdane has appointed Rede Partners as the placement agent for the fund.

The GP launched its previous fund, Verdane Capital VIII in 2013, closing it on SEK 2bn ($302m) in June 2014.

Verdane partner Bjarne Lie declined to comment on any potential fundraising.

Investments
Verdane focuses on direct secondaries, acquiring portfolios of unlisted assets, though it also makes growth investments and buyouts.

According to the US regulatory filing, the type of securities offered by the fund has been registered as debt, rather than the common private equity choice of "other: LP interests". This would suggest the fund is using a Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) debenture fund structure, as sanctioned by the United States Small Business Administration. Debenture structures have seen some use in Nordic private equity and supposedly improves returns through the use of SBIC debenture leverage.

Law firm Venable explains on Lexology.com: "Once licensed and qualified, an SBIC may borrow funds in the form of debentures that are guaranteed by the United States Small Business Administration. These debentures are structured as unsecured, non-recourse loans with a 10-year term, semi-annual interest payments and a lump sum payment of principal due at maturity. Debentures are typically pooled and sold to investors through securities offerings. An eligible SBIC can receive leverage of up to 300% of the amount of investment capital committed to the SBIC from sources other than the SBA or SBA-backed loans, depending primarily on the amount of private capital raised."

Investors
According to the SEC filing, Verdane's ninth fund will have a minimum subscription of $1.2m and has raised no funds so far.

LPs in Verdane's previous fund includes the European Investment Fund, Finnish Industry Investment, Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Company and the Third Swedish National Pension Fund.

The new fund will solicit investments in Illinois, Virginia, New York, Georgia, Ohio, California, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts. According to unquote" data, LPs in those states with previous commitments to Nordic private equity funds include: Calpers, CalSTRS, New York City Employees' Retirement System, Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois and The Northern Trust.

People
Verdane Capital – Bjarne K Lie (partner).

• Tweet  
• Facebook  
• LinkedIn  
• Google plus  
• Send to  

• Topics
• Buyout
• Nordics
• Fundraising
• Verdane Capital Partners
• Sweden
• Norway
• Direct secondary
• United States