Syntegra returns to fundraising after seven years

Syntegra Capital will this year begin raising a new fund, which will continue the investment strategy the GP has followed since its foundation in 1997, focusing on small cross-border buyouts in France, Germany and Italy. Syntegra aims to make equity investments of €15-30m in companies with turnover or enterprise value between €30-300m. Industry response has been described as positive.

The new fund will be Syntegra's first in nearly seven years. Syntegra's most recent fund, SG Capital Europe Fund III, held a final close on €245m in June 2005. According to the private equity firm, the seven-year hiatus between the two funds reflects tough market conditions.

According to unquote" data, private equity firms raised 149 mid-market funds with a pan-European focus between 2005 and 2012. Almost a third of these funds were raised in 2007 and just three in 2011.

In 2009, the investment team of SG Capital Europe – the private equity arm of Société Générale's asset management subsidiary SGAM, founded in 1997 – led the spinout of the business from its parent and rebranded it Syntegra Capital. The firm's three funds were re-named Syntegra Capital I, II and III.

According to unquote" data, the firm's most profitable exit was in 1999 when it sold manufacturer and distributor of adult incontinence products Hygiène Medica to Ontex in a transaction valued at €86.5m. Syntegra's most recent investment was made in 2011 when the firm reinvested alongside new investor Index Ventures in Italian diary and notebook brand Moleskine. The private equity firm has confirmed it will exit the company this year.

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