Shard holds first close on £90m for private debt fund

The vehicle has a £250m target and a £300m hard-cap. It expects to hold a second close early in 2018 and a final close by the end of the year.

The investment period for the fund will be three years and fund life will stand at seven years. Alastair Brown, head of direct lending, will be portfolio manager, according to sources.

Ashurst is acting as legal adviser to SCRP I.

Investors
The fund received capital from European and UK institutional investors, including £30m from British Business Investments and a significant commitment from the European Investment Fund.

Investments
The vehicle will aim to provide both structured senior and junior debt to small and medium-sized enterprises operating in the UK lower-mid-market – specifically companies with an enterprise value below £50m and with between 50-249 employees.

It will invest in a diverse range of SMEs including private-equity-backed businesses, and will target 50-66% sponsored deals. It is sector agnostic and will provide flexible loan capital in support of business growth and expansion, or for event-driven M&A activity, such as a transformative acquisition, management buyout or other changes of control.

Capital is yet to be deployed but the first deal is expected to be completed within Q1 2018, unquote" understands.

People
Shard Capital Partners – Alastair Brown (head of direct lending).

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