Riverside Nears First Close On Latest Fund

Riverside Partners plans to hold a first close on its fourth fund in the coming weeks, according to a source familiar with the situation.

The fund, Riverside Fund IV, has a target of $250 million, which is a slight increase from the Boston-based shop’s $225 million third fund, which closed in 2006.

Riverside Fund III received pledges from Abbott Capital Management, Hartford Investment Management, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, The Investment Fund for Foundations, or TIFF, and MN Services. Fund III was well-received, exceeding its initial target of $175 million, which was already a large increase from the firm’s previous fund of $68 million and its debut fund of $46 million. Probitas Partners served as the placement agent for Fund III.

Riverside Partners was founded in 1988. Led by David Belluck and Brian Guthrie, both formerly of the consulting group Monitor Group, as well as Phillip Borden, Steve Kaplan, and Jon Lemelman, the firm specializes in investments in the health care and technology sectors. It targets companies with annual revenue of between $10 million and $100 million, and is open to a variety of transactions, including partial or complete buyouts, recapitalizations, growth equity deals, divestitures, take-private transactions, and strategic add-on deals.

Recent activity includes a growth investment in Vocollect Inc. in July, and an add-on acquisition of Renewable Power Systems by portfolio company Alteris Renewables in June. A month prior, the firm sponsored the recapitalization of IZI Medical Products, a Baltimore-based provider of medical markers used in image-guided surgery, radiology and radiation therapy.

The firm declined to comment for this article.