Wind Point’s Seventh Fund Hits $760M In First Closing

Wind Point Partners, a Chicago-based firm that acquires mid-sized companies in business services, health care, and other fields, held a first close of $760 million on its seventh fund in late July. That already makes the fund, which has a $1 billion target, larger than its $700 million predecessor.

Roughly 80 percent of the pledges to the first close came from limited partners re-upping with the firm, and 20 percent are new LPs. The fund, which was established at the start of this year, has a minimum investment of $20 million. The final close will occur at the beginning of 2009. Fund VII is not using a placement agent; the legal advisor is Kirkland and Ellis.

LPs in past Wind Point funds include the Teachers’ Retirement System of the State of Illinois, which committed $25 million to Wind Point Partners VI. Wind Point Partners Fund V’s returning LPs included DaimlerChrysler Corp., Northwestern Mutual Life, State of Michigan Retirement Systems, and The State of Wisconsin Investment Board. Newcomers to the fifth fund included Illinois State Board of Investment, the private equity arm of Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, Mass Mutual Life Insurance, PPM America, and Teachers’ Merchant Bank.

Wind Point acquires mid-sized businesses in the business services, consumer products, health care, industrial products and media/communications industries, making equity investments of $20 million to $70 million. The firm tends to make 25 to 30 add-on acquisitions a year across its portfolio. Wind Point typically replaces the top executives at its platform companies after acquiring them.