Carlyle raises $2.24bn for Strategic Partners IV

Alice Tchernookova
03 February 2017

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The Carlyle Group has raised $2.24bn in commitments for its fourth special situations and corporate opportunities fund, Carlyle Stategic Partners IV (CSP IV), after 10 months on the road.

The fundraising efforts were made apparent in a document filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on 30 January. Two consecutive closes for the fund were held in 2016, on $576m in April and £1.51bn in October.

As it stands, CSP IV has raised more capital commitments than its predecessor, CSP III. The third special situations vehicle raised $593m four years ago. CSP II was slightly larger, with a final close held on $1.35bn in 2007. Investments made with CSP III included Waddington North America and Service King I, both fully exited, and Service King II, which is still in the GP's portfolio.

The fund will be managed by the CSP team, consisting of 13 investment managers based in New York and London, and led by co-heads and managing directors Shary Moalemzadeh and Ian B Jackson.

According to the SEC document, TCG Securities, Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, Etgal Holdings, Noah Holdings and BBVA Securities acted as placement agents for the fundraise.

Carlyle declined to comment on the fundraising, citing SEC regulations.

Investors
CSP IV has reportedly received commitments from at least 193 LPs. Investors included Guernsey-registered investment company Global Private Equity One, which committed $23.3m, and the Minnesota State Board of Investment, which committed $100m.

Investments
Launched in 2004 with the $211m CSP I, Carlyle's Strategic Partners vehicles invest up to $100m per ticket in the debt and equity of operationally sound, financially distressed companies.

The team specialises in investments in distressed, complex or "underappreciated" assets, the GP said, and in cyclical, contrarian or event-driven situations.

The funds target the aerospace, automotive, consumer, defence, energy, healthcare, industrial, media, power, retail, technology, telecommunications and transport sectors.

Transactions have already been closed with CSP IV, including an investment in UK residential care group Akari Care and in German group KAP Beteiligungs, in which the GP acquired a 53% stake in November last year.

People
The Carlyle Group – Evan C Middleton, Christian Schmitz, Eric Hyun-Sup Byun (managing directors); Ian B Jackson, Shary Moalemzadeh (managing directors, co-heads).