Second close for CapMan Mezzanine IV fund

Nordic private equity investor CapMan has reached the second closing of its fourth mezzanine fund, CapMan Mezzanine IV, on €142.5m. CapMan Mezzanine IV will make mezzanine investments in middle market Nordic companies in manufacturing, service and retail industries with net sales of between €50m to €500m.

So far, the fund has made one investment in Finnish discount store chain Tokmanni Oy. CapMan’s other recent mezzanine investments have been made in Norwegian EuroProcessing International ASA, Danish Anhydro Group, Finnish Noiro Oy and Swedish Metallfabriken Ljunghäll AB.

The structure of CapMan Mezzanine IV offers investors the possibility to participate in the fund by subscribing to listed assed backed bonds, which will be issued by a Finnish special purpose vehicle Leverator Plc. Leverator Plc will provide a loan facility to the fund managed by CapMan Plc’s subsidiary established in Guernsey. CapMan is the first private equity investor to offer a fund structure of this type in the Nordic market.

“The new fund structure offers more flexibility to investors, who can choose to invest in listed bonds, limited partnership interests or a combination of these,” says CapMan CEO Ari Tolppanen.

CapMan expects additional commitments from new investors before the fund’s final closing in March 2005. CapMan’s previous mezzanine funds were raised in 1995, 1998 and 2000.