Private Equity News & Analysis

CBPE hits £300m for Fund VIII

The mid-market private equity firm is hopeful it will garner at least £360m – equalling Fund VII – by the end of the year in its first fundraising since it span out from investment banking group Close Brothers.

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CBPE Capital has held a first close on its eighth fund. This is the first fundraising the mid-market firm has undertaken since its spin-out from European investment bank Close Brothers at the beginning of this year.

CBPE held a first close on £270 million (€304 million; $408 million) in March and has since garnered further commitments taking it past the £300 million mark, the firm said in a statement.

No target size has been formally announced, but the firm expects to raise a similar amount for the fund as its predecessor, which closed on £360 million in 2004. The fund will target investments in businesses with enterprise values up to £150 million.

The fund’s predecessor has so far returned 0.35x capital to investors, with 10 investments as yet unrealised.

John Snook, CBPE managing partner, described the fundraising progress as “very pleasing” considering the current state of the market and added that the firm was looking to “get the new fund to work as quickly as possible”.

The final close for Fund VIII is expected later this year. Berchwood Partners, a transatlantic placement agency, is acting on behalf of the fund.

Of the 17 limited partners so far committed to Fund VIII, 44 percent are UK-based, 40 percent are based in continental Europe and the remainder are from the US.