Maranon tops $107 mln for second mezz fund

Maranon Capital has closed on $102.5 million from 16 investors for Maranon Mezzanine Fund II LP, one SEC filing showed, while it has won commitments of $5 million from a single investor for Maranon Mezzanine Offshore Fund II LP, according to a second filing.

Together, the pair of funds launch the firm toward an aggregate $300 million target for mezzanine investing through the new vehicle. In the documents, the firm said it intends to use the two funds together. Executives declined to comment, citing the ongoing fundraising.

Maranon Capital raised $207 million for its 2009 vintage inaugural mezzanine fund in the wake of the financial crisis, a total that was short of its $250 million target, according to the Thomson One private equity database.

Maranon Capital invests in both sponsor-backed and non-sponsored financing for privately held, mid-market companies in North America with $5 to $50 million of EBITDA, according to the firm’s website. It says it will invest up to $50 million in senior debt transactions, up to $30 million for mezzanine deals, and up to $10 million in equity co-invests where it also is providing the mezzanine financing.

Although it will consider investments in most industry sectors, the firm has a special focus on industries including business services, consumer products and services, healthcare services, distribution and manufacturing, its website says.

Known LP investors include American National Insurance Co, the Arizona State Retirement System, Capricorn Investment Group LLC, Credit Suisse’s Customized Fund Investment Group (now a part of Grosvenor Capital Management LP) and the Teachers’ Retirement System of the State of Illinois, according to Thomson One.

In October, Maranon Capital announced that it had raised $330 million for its second credit fund, Maranon Senior Credit Fund II. Leverage was provided via a loan arranged and agented by SunTrustBank. The firm said it planned to use that vehicle to provide senior term, unitranche and second-lien transactions.

M2O Private Fund Advisors LLC is acting as placement agent for the new mezzanine funds, the filings showed.