Quartilium Closes New Fund-of-Funds With $341M

European and U.S. private equity funds got a vote of confidence with the announcement in early March that Paris-based Finama Private Equity’s fund-of-funds group Quartilium closed its latest fund-of-funds with $341 million (€284 million). Quartilium now manages more than $721 million (€600 million) in assets.

Quartilium II is a generalist fund-of-funds that invests in private equity funds in Europe and the United States. It had an initial fund raising goal of $300 million (€250 million). It is a significant step up from its first fund, Quartilium I, which closed in 2002 with €130 million. Quartilium I was fully invested by 2004.

Finama Private Equity, Quartilium’s parent group, is an affiliate of French insurance company Groupama, which manages more than $87 billion (€73 billion) in assets. Groupama committed between 60% and 70% of the fund-of-fund’s capital. Other limited partners include French institutional investors such as banks, insurance companies and pension funds.

The new fund-of-funds had its final close last December, the firm said. Quartilium II is already 50% committed and has been investing in European and U.S.-based buyout and venture funds since 2004. It expects to be fully invested by the end of the year. Quartilium II’s aim is to invest two thirds of its capital in European funds and one third of its fund in the United States and to have two thirds of its capital in buyout funds and one third of its capital committed to venture funds.

Quartilium II’s latest commitments include a cross-section of established buyout and venture groups. U.S.-based private equity firms that it has backed include: New York’s Blackstone Group, which received Quartilium II funding for the more than $12 billion Blackstone Capital Partners V; Chicago-based buyout shop Thoma Cressey Equity Partners, which received funding from the fund-of-funds for Thoma Cressey VIII, which closed earlier this year with $765 million; and venture funds Highland VII, Insight Ventures V and Index Ventures III.

Quartilium has been expanding its private equity presence in Europe and the U.S. Earlier this year the group added former Boston Consulting Group consultant and Advent International executive Olivier Thevenet to its staff. Quartilium also launched a mezzanine fund-of-funds and had a first closing of $60 million (?50 million). The fund will invest in up to 15 European and U.S.-based funds in the mezzanine sector. — M.S.