Irving Place raises $500 mln in Fund III restructuring

The filing said Irving Place Capital Partners III SPV raised $500 million from one investor. It’s not clear who the investor is. Park Hill Group worked on the fundraising, the filing said.

It’s also not clear if Irving Place intends to raise more money. The target of the fund is not indicated on the filing.

Alex Yankus, a spokesman for Irving Place, declined to comment.

Irving Place has been in the market looking for an investor to buy out existing limited partners in Fund III, which raised $2.7 billion in 2006, sources said in past interviews. The firm was looking for an investor who would include additional capital for new investments as part of the deal – known as a stapled secondary, sources said.

Bloomberg reported in February that a consortium led by Coller Capital was in talks to buy out investors in Fund III and raise money for new investments. Bloomberg said the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority might partner with Coller on the deal. None of those details could be confirmed.

The Pennsylvania Public School Employees’ Retirement System, an LP in Fund III, had been considering selling its stake in the vehicle, according to the agenda for its May board meeting. However, no action was taken on the issue, said Evelyn Williams, spokeswoman for the pension system.

Fund III was generating a 3.4 percent net internal rate of return and a 1.22x multiple as of Dec. 31, 2014, according to the Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund.

Irving Place, formerly known as Bear Stearns Merchant Banking, decided in 2013 to delay raising its fourth fund. LPs had granted the firm a two-year extension on Fund III, until February 2015. That was the second time LPs had granted the firm an investment period extension.

Correction: An earlier version of this report misspelled Alex Yankus’ name. The report has been updated.