East Capital ups investments in CEE

Swedish listed fund-of-funds East Capital Explorer has provided additional backing for two combination private and public equity funds in its portfolio, East Capital Bering Russia Fund and East Capital Bering Balkan Fund. The investments came at the end of September.

East Capital Explorer invested an additional €20m in newly issued shares in East Capital Bering Russia Fund, and €10m in additional newly issued shares in East Capital Bering Balkan Fund.

East Capital Bering Balkan Fund was launched in July 2006 to back listed and unlisted Balkan equities. East Capital Bering Russia was launched in June 2004 to invest in listed and unlisted equities in Russia and the former Soviet Union.

Both funds are listed on the Cayman Island Stock Exchange and are managed by East Capital, an asset manager that invests in Russia and the other CIS countries, the Balkans, the Baltic States, Central Asia and Central Eastern Europe. East Capital Explorer, also managed by East Capital, is listed on the OMX Nordic exchange Stockholm.

East Capital Explorer first backed East Capital Bering Russia fund with €24m in December 2007. The total fund size of the fund was approximately US$97.07m as of the end of September.

East Capital Explorer first backed East Capital Bering Balkan Fund in December 2007 with a €25m investment, followed a year later in December 2008 by an additional €10m. The total fund size of East Capital Bering Balkan was approximately US$100.25m as of the end of September.

The minimum investment for both funds is US$100,000. Most investors pay a subscription fee of 5% upon investment in the funds; however, East Capital has waived this fee for East Capital Explorer. Other terms are the same for all investors, including a 2% management fee and a 20% performance fee after the fund manager meets a specified hurdle.

Following its recent investments, East Capital Explorer has €80.5m in cash and deposits, corresponding to €2.27 (SEK 23.16) per share, of which €42.1m is earmarked for future investments in Eastern Europe.