Fundraising

Altor raises €1.15bn for Fund II

The Stockholm-based private equity firm received commitments from over 50 investors for the new vehicle.

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Nordic buyout firm Altor Equity Partners (Altor) has held a first and final close of its second buyout fund on €1.15 billion ($1.36 billion).
 
Harald Mix, partner at Altor, told PEO that the firm began marketing the fund in late December of last year. 
 

The vast majority of capital came from existing investors, which is a reflection of the relationships we have built up over a ten-year period.

Harald Mix, partner, Altor Equity Partners

The investor base for the new vehicle included: Harvard Management Company; Princeton University; Goldman Sachs Private Equity Group; Pantheon Ventures; AlpInvest Partners; Länsförsäkringar Liv; Skandia Liv; Allianz Private Equity Partners; and Standard Life Investments (Private Equity).
 
Nordic investors represented 25 percent of total commitments, other European investors 35 percent and US investors 40 percent.
 
Mix said that almost all investors in Altor’s previous vehicle, the vintage 2003 €650 million Fund I, committed to the new fundraising. “The vast majority of capital came from existing investors, which is a reflection of the relationships we have built up over a ten-year period,” he said. “We haven’t really had to do any new fundraising.”
 
The new fund is composed of €900 million in base commitments and €250 million in top-up commitments, which will serve primarily to develop portfolio companies, said Mix.
 
Fund II will focus on mid-market transactions in the Nordic region. “Our typical transaction values are between €75 million and €400 million, with the sweet spot in the lower end of that spectrum, so we’ll be looking at making €25 million to €100 million equity investments,” said Mix.
 
Fund I has completed 12 platform investments and almost as many add-on acquisitions for its portfolio companies. Mix said that, following completion of the NOK586 million (€75 million; $90 million) buyout of Norwegian boating electronics company Simrad Yachting, Fund I will be fully invested. He added that the fund has so far returned roughly 50 percent of its committed capital to investors.
 
London-based Helix Associates and Boston-headquartered Monument Group advised on the fundraising. Both firms were the placement agents on Fund I. Legal advice was provided by London-based international law firm Ashurst.