Mérieux closes Mérieux Participations 3 on €377m

Officially announced in Q3 2018, the fund held a first close on €200m that same quarter. It had a €300m target and its hard-cap was set at €335m.

No placement agent was used for the fundraise, Unquote has learned.

The fund's predecessors, Mérieux Participations, closed on €70m in 2010 and Mérieux Participations 2, closed on €150m in 2014, were evergreen vehicles. 

Based in Lyon, Paris and Boston, Mérieux is a management company active since 2018, which stemmed from Mérieux Développement. Founded in 2009 by the Institut Mérieux, Mérieux Développement operates an evergreen vehicle that makes growth and venture capital investments in Europe and North America. Since 2010 it has committed around €350m across 30 companies.

The growth and buyout team of Mérieux recently hired two associates, Marie-Justine Lecomte and Romain Chevrillon. It now counts eight people.

Investors
West-European family offices as well institutional LPs, including funds-of-funds and banks, have backed Mérieux Participations 3, Unquote understands. A group of 15 new LPs have backed the fund for the first time, of which six were based outside France. 

The European Investment Fund is invested in the vehicle, according to Unquote Data.

The GP is open to co-invest with some of its LPs in transactions with tickes of more than €50m. 

Investments
Mérieux Participations 3 backs small- to mid-cap companies in western Europe and North America in health-related businesses operating within the nutrition and food safety sectors. The fund typically invests €20-40m per company. 

The vehicle has already completed seven transactions in France and Europe, of which four were majority buyouts. Deals include France-based Addmedica, Italy-based Doc Generici and Sweden-based Mabtech.

People
Mérieux Equity Partners – François Valencony (president).

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