Vector raises $1.2bn for fourth fund

The San Francisco firm’s fourth, $1.2 billion fund is more than three times the size of its predecessor, allowing it to target more and larger investments.

San Francisco-based Vector Capital has closed its fourth fund on $1.2 billion (€870 million), more than three times the size of Vector’s previous fund, which closed on $350 million in 2005.

“The resources of a larger fund will enable us to bring more value to a greater number of portfolio companies,” Vector managing partner Alex Slusky said in a statement. While Fund III targeted investments between $30 million and $100 million, Fund IV’s size will allow Vector to pursue a greater number of large investments, such its April acquisition of SafeNet for $634 million, the statement said.

The new fund will be invested in buyouts, spin-outs and recapitalizations of established technology companies. The fund will also look to hold long-term stakes in undervalued public companies.

The majority of Fund III’s limited partners returned for Fund IV, which also attracted “many new investors” including the Harvard Management Company.

The latest fund brings Vector’s total capital under management to more than $2 billion. The 10-year-old firm focuses on investments in the software, online services, communications equipment and security products sectors. In the past, Slusky has said the firm tries to cover the underserved intersection between the buyout and venture capital markets.