De Rothschild reaches €250m

After only eight months on the fundraising trail Edmond de Rothschild Investment Partners has held a final close on its Winch Capital 2 development capital fund at €250.

Winch Capital 2 is planning to target companies with strong positions in their markets and sales between €20-250m. The fund will invest €5-15m in its stakes through capital increases or owner buy-outs.

The new institutional investors were said to be won over by the team, its approach and the economy interest of capital development at a critical juncture when French SMEs need to strengthen their capital bases and finance their growth. The LCF Rothschild Group did not increase its exposure which now represents less than 10% of the fund.

Chairman of Edmond de Rothschild Investment Partners, Pierre-Michel Passy said: “We were targeting a second closing around €200m. In only four months, we went above the hard cap of €250m.”

For the first close the team attracted mainly French investors predominantly funds of private equity funds. They included Fondinvest, AGF Private Equity, SGAM Private Equity and Dahlia. Major investors like Prédica and Crédit Mutuel Arkéa also subscribed to the closing.”

Advisors in Winch Capital 2 included Candela Capital (financial advisor) and Linklaters Paris (legal).