Charterhouse closes fund IX on €4bn

Charterhouse Capital Partners said it has closed its ninth buyout fund with €4 billion in commitments. It raised the same amount for Fund VIII, which closed in March 2006.

As PEO reported last month, the London-based buyout firm decided to slash the fund’s original target by one-third amid tougher fundraising conditions. Other firms that have done the same include The Blackstone Group and Madison Dearborn.

Investors in Charterhouse Capital Partners IX include the San Francisco Employees Retirement System, which committed €25 million, and the Washington State Investment Board, which committed $300 million.

In November, Charterhouse exited acrylics company Lucite International after nearly a decade. The company was sold for $1.6 billion; Charterhouse acquired an 81.6 percent stake in UK-based Lucite for €750 million in 1999.