KKR European Fund II closes on ?4.5bn

KKR has reached a final closing on KKR European Fund II, Limited Partnership, its second private equity fund targeting investments in Western Europe. The fund was capped at €4.5bn, exceeding the firm’s initial target by €1.5bn and KKR had received subscriptions significantly in excess of the €4.5 billion cap.

The executives of KKR have committed €100m of the capital raised. The remaining capital was raised from a variety of institutional investors across North America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East, including approximately 40% from new investors.

KKR’s first European fund, KKR European Fund, Limited Partnership, which was raised in 1999, has invested or committed for investment all US$3bn of its committed

capital.

KKR currently is managing approximately US$11.5bn in funds, including

European II and the US$6bn KKR Millennium Fund LP, which is focused on US and Canadian companies.

Since the firm was founded in 1976, it has raised 11 funds, invested US$22.5bn in equity, and realized more than US$50.7bn for limited partners. KKR’s gross IRR across all its funds is 27.1%, representing a multiple of invested capital of 2.7x.

In the last ten years, the firm has distributed an average of US$3.3bn each year to investors.

KKR made its first investment in Europe in 1996, before raising its first European

fund in 1999, and in aggregate has invested US$4.8bn of equity in 17

European companies through a wide range of transactions.