QuattroR holds €711m first close for maiden vehicle

Amedeo Goria
21 July 2017

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Italian turnaround investor QuattroR has held a first closing on €711m for its first vehicle, Fondo QuattroR.

The fund launched with a €1.5bn target. The GP targets turnaround investments in Italian mid- and large-cap companies, which suffered from the recent macroeconomic environment and high debt burden, and aims to provide fresh capital as well as refinance their capital structure. The GP expects returns between 10-15%.

The management team owns a majority stake in the GP, while Italian state-backed investment firm Cassa Depositi e Prestiti holds a minority stake. The management team include chairperson Andrea Morante, CEO Francesco Conte, senior partner Stefano Cassina, partner Stefano Focaccia and chief financial officer Carlo Michero. The GP's board currently has five members and will increase to nine representatives.

Investors
To date, the fund attracted commitments from several Italian state-backed institutions including investment fund Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP), which committed the largest amount of capital, understood to be around €300m. Alongside CDP, public institutions such as insurance fund Inail, and pension funds Inarcassa and Cassa Forense also committed capital to the fund.

Several other pension and insurance funds also committed capital to the vehicle, according to public documents.

Investments
The GP targets companies with revenues in excess of €100m, with positive EBITDA in most cases. It aims to invest equity tickets of more than €20m, with a sweet spot between €50-100m. The GP is mostly sector-agnostic but will not consider the real estate and financial markets.

The investment strategy include majority and minority acquisitions with the aim of retaining a governance position. Beside equity, funding can include credit facilities including convertible loans and quasi-equity financing.

People
QuattroR – Andrea Morante (chair); Francesco Conte (CEO); Marco Bellocci, Giovanni Covati, Ermanno Sgravato (members of the board); Stefano Cassina (senior partner); Stefano Focaccia (partner); Carlo Michero (chief financial officer).