First closing for CDC-Innovation 2001

CDC-Innovation Partners, the high tech venture capital arm of CDC-IXIS Private Equity, has announced an initial closing of its third fund, Science et Innovation 2001. So far the fund has raised €102 million towards an ultimate target of €150 million. Stéphane Boudon, general partner, says other investors have also made commitments that have yet to be formalised.

To date approximately 80 per cent of the capital has come from French institutional investors, although this figure is set to decrease for the final close. CDC IXIS Private Equity sponsored the fund, other investors include Bayerische Landesbank and Caisses d’Epargne. CDC-Innovation will continue to target investors across Europe to increase the fund’s capital before the closing deadline in one years’ time. Boudon is confident the fund will close before this. He said: “We are happy to have raised this amount as fund raising is not easy at the moment.”

The Paris-based investor manages over €300 million. Its two other funds are CDC Innovation 96 (€61 million) and CDC Innovation 2000 (€142 million), which has €70 million set aside for follow-on investments in existing portfolio companies. The investment strategy for the new fund remains the same as CDC Innovation 2000, diversified by geography and sector but focused on early stage and seed investments. The CDC Innovation funds target small and medium sized companies in high tech sectors such as life science, biotechnology, IT, telecommunications, e-commerce, electronics and components. Around 70 per cent of investments will be in France.

The first investment from the new fund is expected in the next few weeks.