Sigefi PE closes midcap fund on €124m

Sigefi Private Equity, the fund management arm of French investor Siparex, has closed its latest vehicle, Siparex Midcap, with capital commitments of €124 million ($155 million).

Siparex Midcap will make investments of between €1.5 million and €6 million in growth capital and buyout/buy-in transactions in French SMEs. The fund has also allocated 20 percent of its capital to investments in Italian, Spanish and Portuguese businesses.

According to Siparex, the new vehicle’s investor base was composed of 70 percent institutional investors; 5 percent industrial groups; and 25 percent individual investors. Of the individual investors, more than half came from the north of France.

Foreign investors accounted for approximately 10 percent of capital commitments to Siparex Midcap, including North American and European funds that have invested in previous Siparex vehicles. In addition, 71 percent of total commitments came from investors in previous vehicles.

Siparex will also begin raising funds for its Siparex SPF IV Middle Market vehicle in the next few months, targeting the higher end of the lower middle market in France. The firm said that its predecessor, Siparex SPF III Middle Market, which closed on €146.8 million in 2000, is now almost fully invested.

With the closing of Siparex Midcap, Sigefi Private Equity now has over €500 million of assets under management. The Paris-based firm has 27 investment professionals operating out of offices in Lyon, Lille, Nantes, Milan and Madrid.