True Wind, formed by ex-KKR tech execs, hits market with Fund II after pandemic pause

The firm held a first close with existing investors around March/April timeframe, sources said.

True Wind Capital, an emerging manager formed by two ex-KKR executives, is targeting $800 million for its sophomore fund after a pause in fundraising in the depths of the pandemic, sources told Buyouts.

The firm, led by Adam Clammer and Jamie Greene, launched Fund II earlier this year. It held a first close with existing investors around March, sources said. True Wind filed a Form D fundraising document, without disclosing a target or amount raised, on March 25.

True Wind has worked with FocusPoint Capital Group and Aqueduct Capital Group on the fundraising, the Form D showed.

Since the first close, True Wind closed the inaugural deal in Fund II with its investment in AIA Contract Documents, which provides customizable legal documents to the construction industry. True Wind invested alongside The American Institute of Architects on the deal, which was announced in October, according to a release from the firm.

It’s not clear how much the firm has raised so far for the second fund. The firm paused fundraising after the pandemic shut down markets in March, after it held a first close on Fund II, sources said.

During the marketing interregnum, the firm in June closed its first special purpose acquisition company deal, merging its SPAC Nebula Acquisition Corporation with Open Lending, a data analytics business in the automotive lending sector.

Open Lending, which is public as a result of the SPAC merger, is held in True Wind’s first fund as a portfolio company. This structure was a way for the firm to avoid conflicts with fund LPs, who expect GPs to spend their time focusing on investments from the fund.

The firm, meanwhile, raised $525 million for its second SPAC in September, and earlier this month filed for its third SPAC, seeking up to $250 million for Nebula Caravel Acquisition.

Clammer and Greene formed True Wind in 2014. They were co-founders of KKR’s global technology group, with Clammer joining in 1995 and Greene in 1986.

The partner group at True Wind expanded for the second fund. Starting with Clammer and Greene in Fund I, now the partner group includes Sean Giese, who joined in 2018 from Technology Crossover Ventures; Brandon Van Buren, who joined in 2017 from Google Capital; and Aaron Matto, who joined in 2015 from Spectrum Equity.

The firm also hired John Gray as a vice president from Audax Capital Group.