Silverfleet closes second fund on €870m hard-cap

Silverfleet stated it had launched the fundraising process in late 2014. The GP had, however, appointed Annette Wilson as head of investor relations at the end of 2013 – marking the first time the pan-European buy-and-build player has had an individual dedicated to that role – with plans for a new fund already being considered.

Wilson's role in the fundraise was of particular note, having joined the firm as the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive came into force.

Credit Suisse Asset Management acted as placement agent for the fund and Proskauer Rose acted as legal, tax and regulatory adviser.

The fund's terms are industry standard.

The vehicle's predecessor, Silverfleet Capital Partners Fund, closed in April 2009, with total commitments of €665m. That vehicle still has nine active investments which, according to Neil MacDougall, managing partner of Silverfleet, are maturing nicely.

MacDougall said this latest fundraise was focused on diversifying the GP's investor base. Many private equity funds raised in the mid-2000s were more exposed to banks, however, following regulatory changes restricting how much banks can invest in funds, GPs have had to look further afield to replace that capital.

MacDougall also said the GP is well-resourced to start deploying the newly-raised capital, with announcement of new deals to be made in the near term.

Investors
Silverfleet's second fund received commitments from 25 institutional investors. The fundraising process saw the firm diversify its LP base both by type and geography. Insurance groups made up the largest portion of the fund, committing 42%, followed by pension funds with 29%, funds-of-funds with 15%, sovereign wealth funds with 9%, and the balance coming from family offices.

Geographically, 75% of commitments came from European investors, 15% came from the US and 10% from the rest of the world.

Investments
Silverfleet II will continue to adopt a buy-and-build strategy, targeting businesses with enterprise values of €75-250m, headquartered in the UK and Ireland, the DACH region, France, Benelux and the Nordic region. Silverfleet focuses on the business and financial services, healthcare, manufacturing and retail, leisure and consumer products sectors.

People
Neil MacDougall is managing partner of Silverfleet and Annette Wilson is head of investor relations.

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