Initiative & Finance closes second fund on €168m

Fundraising for Initiative & Finance II kicked off with a €160m hard-cap in April 2015.

Speaking to unquote", CEO Jean-Bernard Meurisse explained the €160m had already been raised in July but the closing was delayed until November while legal technicalities were dealt with.

Initiative & Finance II comes with a 10-year lifespan and follows the industry standards with regards to management fees, hurdle and carried interest.

According to the firm, the buyout fund was heavily oversubscribed, with potential commitments exceeding the €200m mark. Placement agent Siksal and legal advisory Chabrerie Baert Associés were engaged for the fundraising.

The fund is the second to be launched by Initiative & Finance since it spun out of Natixis and sold its existing portfolio to Ardian in 2010. The firm had launched a €140m maiden vehicle by the end of that year, which recently concluded its investment process after sealing its final two deals on 6 November and 10 November.

As of November, Initiative & Finance II's predecessor has sold four of its 27 portfolio companies under management and reportedly returned around 50% of all commitments.

Investors
Initiative & Finance II's LP base features exclusively institutional investors. The backers, numbering around 15, were already present in the firm's first fund except for new entrant Amundi.

The group includes a mix of state-backed investors such as BPI France and European Investment Fund; GPs such as Ardian and Swen Capital Partners; funds-of-funds such as Idinvest Partners, LGT Capital Partners and Access Capital Partners; and life insurers such as CNP Assurance.

In total, the institutional crowd provided €165m of the €168m fund size, while the remaining capital came via the GP's own 2% contribution, unquote" understands.

Investments
According to Meurisse, Initiative & Finance II will prioritise buyout transactions but will dedicate some of its capital to growth investments as well. The small-cap fund will write €2-15m tickets, with a sweet spot in the €4-10m range.

The vehicle will seek companies valued in the €5-50m space when acquiring majority stakes and will consider assets with EVs of up to the €80m mark with minority investments.

The businesses will predominantly be headquartered in France, with the possibility of backing those from neighbouring French-speaking countries such as Belgium and Switzerland.

The fund will be used for its maiden deal within the next 15 days, unquote" understands.

People
Initiative & Finance II will be managed by CEO Jean-Bernard Meurisse, managing director Thierry Giron and associate directors Matthieu Douchet, Jean-Michel Laveu and Arnaud Mendelsohn.

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• Topics
• France
• Buyout
• France
• Small-cap buyout