Iris Capital II closes on E176.55m

12 July 2005

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Iris Capital has held a final close of E176.55m on its fund Iris Capital II. The vehicle was launched at the end of 2003, with a target of E150m. It has already held a first close on E103m in December 2003 and a second close on E141m in June 2004. Structured as a FCPR, Iris Capital II has a lifespan of 5+5 years, with a possible two-year extension.Investors in Iris Capital II notably include CDC Entreprises and the German insurance group ERGO. Both groups have contributed a cornerstone investment of E35m to the fund. They each took a 20% shareholding in Iris Capital Management, when it spun out from the CDC Group in December 2003. The group's management team acquired a majority interest in the company, which had previously been named Part'Com and was entirely captive. A US LP has contributed to the final round of fund commitments. Around half of the fund's investors are not from France.Iris Capital II has already made seven investments and has recently exited from Suresnes-based telecom company Cirpack and German magazine publisher Computec. Iris Capital intends to follow the investment strategy it has developed over the last 19 years, focusing on commitments to the media, communications and information technology sectors. Both early-stage and expansion investments will be made on a pan-European scale, with limited exposure to North America. The vehicle will generally make lead investments of around E2-10m. Since 1990, the Iris Capital team has invested in 185 companies located in 14 European countries, as well as in Canada and the US; the company had achieved 138 full exits by 20 June 2005.