Lehman Brothers mezzanine fund exceeds E500m target

Lehman Brothers has closed its European Mezzanine Fund 2003 on €750m, eight months after the fund was launched. This is the investment bank’s first dedicated mezzanine fund in Europe and was oversubscribed by €250m. It aims to invest across a range of sectors and focus on LBOs of companies with enterprise values of over €400m.

It is to primarily target companies in Western Europe. The fund’s capital was raised from over 30 institutions and high net worth investors based in Europe, the US, Asia and the Middle East.

Accompanying the close is the appointment of Christopher Cooke to the fund’s investment team as a principal and managing director of Lehman Brothers.

Around €200m has been invested to date in 12 companies, including UK undertakers Dignity following its flotation on April 1, 2004 and bicycle and car parts retailer Halfords, which is due to float in June.