Idinvest ups private debt fund in €205m interim close

Idinvest is aiming to reach a final close in excess of €250m by the end of June. It started the fundraising process at the end of 2012. The vehicle is structured as a Fonds Commun de Titrisation (FCT), the French equivalent of a special purpose vehicle.

The generalist GP has bolstered its private debt activity in the past two years: it notably raised €275m for its Idinvest Private Debt vehicle at the end of 2011 and launched a new mezzanine fund with a €150m target, Idinvest Private Value Europe, in April 2012. The former was initially designed as a generalist debt vehicle but will instead focus mainly on mezzanine, hence the decision to launch the acquisition finance-focused Dette Senior fund.

Idinvest is not using the services of a placement agent to raise Dette Senior, instead relying on its historical ties with the French life insurance industry.

Investors
The fund has so far attracted commitments from insurance companies, with the vast majority of investors being French life insurance players. Idinvest is hoping to attract 10-12 LPs by final close.

Investments
Idinvest will use the fund to invest in mid-cap LBOs, but will place a greater emphasis on providing senior debt for European SMEs looking to accelerate their growth trajectory, both via acquisitions and by expanding in emerging markets.

The fund has already provided facilities to four businesses. Among these are Dutch tax consultancy Intertrust, bought by Blackstone from Waterland Private Equity for a reported €675m in December, and EQT-backed Austrian software company UC4.

People
Eric Gallerne, who joined Idinvest in 2012, will pilot the fund's activity.

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• Topics
• Funds
• IDInvest Partners (AGF Private Equity)