Cube wraps up second fund on €1.04bn

Cube Infrastructure Managers has concluded fundraising for its second fund, closing slightly below target on €1.04 billion.

The Luxembourg-based firm launched the fund in 2016 with a target of €1.2 billion and reached a first close in September that year on €358.5 million, with the European Investment Bank committing €100 million.

Other LPs include the Maine Public Employees Retirement System and Denmark’s Nykredit Asset Management, while Cube chief executive Renaud de Matharel said the group was “extremely pleased to have enlarged our investor base to new Asian investors”.

The vehicle targets investments in the energy transition, telecoms and public transport sectors, and Cube said it had deployed about €400 million into eight investment platforms. Assets in the fund include Italian district heating network CogenInfra, London broadband provider G.Network, French public transport platform CFTR and Danish bus operator Umove. Cube targets a gross internal rate of return of 12-15 percent.

Cube’s close of its second fund comes almost exactly nine years after it closed its maiden vehicle on €1 billion. At the time, it was still part of French bank Natixis before a management buyout in 2016.

It is currently in the process of divesting Fund I assets. Last month it offloaded Belgian transport operator Hansea to DWS. It also sold French district heating group Idex to Antin last year, in a deal thought to be worth €1 billion-€1.5 billion.

Cube did not respond to a request for further comment.

Cube’s closing adds to the number of funds targeting European infrastructure, with Ardian closing its €6.1 billion fund in March and Macquarie last month closing its latest European vehicle on €6 billion.