TA Associates closes funds

US buyout house TA Associates has raised two new funds: the US$3.5bn TA X, a private equity fund; and TA Subordinated Debt Fund II (TA SDF II), a US$777.5m mezzanine fund. TA’s main geographical focus will continue to be on the US, but it will still be investing in Europe. According to Thomson Venture Economics, TA has made a total of 14 investments in Europe. TA X will make equity investments of between US$50m and US$300m, concentrating on companies operating in the technology, financial services, business services, healthcare and consumer sectors.

TA SDF II will invest between US$10m and US$75m in mid market growth companies, primarily alongside equity from TA’s private equity funds, including TA X. Both funds have yet to make any investments, but the first are expected before the summer.

The US$3.5bn raised by the firm’s tenth fund exceeds its preceding fund, TA IX, which closed on US$2bn in July 2000. TA X was originally supposed to be the same size. The new mezzanine fund is also bigger than TA SDF, which raised US$500m in March 2000.