Headway closes debut secondary fund

London-based Headway Capital Partners has closed its debut secondary fund, with commitments of €52 million ($63 million).

The new secondary firm is headed up by three ex-Coller Capital professionals: Christiaan de Lint, Sebastian Junoy and Laura Shen.

Unlike their emphasis at Coller, the new Headway team will focus on smaller and more complex transactions when deploying Headway Investment Partners LP.

The firm says it will purchase limited partnership interests in venture capital and private equity funds and will also acquire portfolios of direct investments and minority stakes in individual companies.

Commenting on the firm’s strategy, partner Laura Shen said in a statement: “Vendors are becoming increasingly sophisticated in terms of their liquidity requirements. For a secondaries firm to be successful it can no longer be about buying on the cheap; it must be about creating mutually beneficial solutions.”

Investors in the fund comprise solely family offices and high net worth individuals from around the globe. Sebastian Junoy, partner, explained the rationale: “We felt that we needed an investor base that places the highest value on discretion. Many general partners prefer working with a secondary buyer who can make interesting introductions to potential limited partners.”

All three partners at the firm joined from Coller Capital in 2004. De Lint previously worked at Citibank, Shen’s previous experience included spells at Bain Capital and Goldman Sachs, while Junoy worked for JP Morgan and the International Finance Corporation.

Headway is the second spin out to emerge from secondary giant Coller Capital, following the set up of Greenpark Capital in 2000. Greenpark closed its second, €350 million, secondary fund in October last year.