Clessidra holds €270m first close for fourth fund

Harriet Matthews
15 June 2021

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Clessidra Private Equity has held a first close for its fourth fund with commitments of more than €270m.

Pre-marketing activities for Clessidra Capital Partners 4 (CCP 4) began in November 2020. The fund has a €500m target and a hard-cap of €600m.

A source close to the situation told Unquote that the fund expects to hold a final close at the end of 2022.

Clessidra's third fund was fully deployed as of March 2021, according to Unquote Data. The vehicle held a final close in December 2016 on €607.3m. During the course of the fundraise, in May 2016, Italmobiliare acquired a majority stake in the GP. Clessidra subsequently announced a relaunch of the fundraise, revising the target of Clessidra III from €1bn to €800m.

The GP said in a statement that the first close of the fund marks the completion of Clessidra's growth path over the past year, which has involved a strategic repositioning towards the Italian mid-cap market, as well as the rationalisation of governance and the redesigning of the fund's investment team.

Alma Società tra Avvocati is providing legal advice for the fund. Mediobanca is acting as placement agent. Societe Generale Securities Services will act as the depositary bank of the fund.

Investors
Cassa Forense and Fondo Italiano d'Investimento are cornerstone investors in the fund, Clessidra said in a statement. Italmobiliare has also committed €75m to the fund as of its first close.

At the time of this first close, the fund has six institutional investors in total, all of which are from Italy; five of these were existing investors, while one new LP has joined.

Clessidra said in the same statement that the next stages of fundraising for the vehicle will be focused on Italian investors and institutional investors.

Italmobiliare committed €90.2m to CCP 3. LPs in the fund also include SwanCap Partners and Partners Group, according to Unquote Data.

Investments
CCP 4 will continue the strategy of its predecessors, acquiring both minority and majority stakes in mid-market businesses valued at €100-500m. The fund will deploy equity tickets of €40-100m, according to Unquote Data.

A source close to the situation told Unquote that the first investment from the fund could be realised a few weeks after its first close. The vehicle will make 8-10 platform investments in total.

The fund will deploy the majority of its capital in Italy, but has the option to deploy up to 20% in the rest of Europe. The vehicle will focus its investments on five core sectors: industrial goods and services; financial services; consumer products and retail; business services; and healthcare.

People
Clessidra Private Equity – Carlo Presenti (chairman); Andrea Ottaviano (CEO).

Click here for Unquote's most recent GP Profile on Clessidra