Eurazeo has exceeded its fundraising target for the Eurazeo PME IV1 Fund by attracting more than €1 billion, 50% more than the previous fund.
This total reflects the success and appeal of Eurazeo’s Small-mid buyout strategy which is focused on helping sector-leading French SMEs to expand internationally.
Since 2006, the strategy’s assets under management have grown from €50 million to more than €1 billion. In 2011, these investments were financed solely by Eurazeo’s balance sheet, but now more than 60% of assets come from institutional and private investors, as opposed to 38% for the predecessor fund.
Partner-investors include top-tier institutional investors – asset managers, sovereign funds and insurance companies – and family offices originating in France (64%), other European countries (24%) and Asia (12%).
Their renewed confidence also reflects the returns generated by Eurazeo’s Small-mid buyout strategy, resulting in particular from its strong track record in terms of exits. Recent disposals include Orolia (x3.7), Vitaprotech (x3.2)2 and Intech Médical (x3), illustrating Eurazeo’s selective approach and transformative investments.
The fund has already got off to an excellent start, investing 40% of its assets in five new investments across the following sectors:
Tech-enabled / Business services: i-Tracing, an independent French leader in cybersecurity services (June 2021); Dilitrust, a provider of unified, secure SaaS solutions to help legal departments and governance bodies meet the challenges of digital transformation (March 2022) and Wiismile, a pioneering provider of all-in-one employee benefit plans (June 2022);
Animal health: Sevetys 3, a group of veterinary clinics, via a joint investment with the Eurazeo’s Mid-large buyout team4
Financial services: Groupe Premium, a leading French distributor of life insurance and retirement savings solutions (June 2021).
Eurazeo’s Small-mid buyout team has been a pioneer in terms of ESG engagement since 2008, factoring ESG aspects into all its fundraising activities. Eurazeo PME IV is an SFDR Article 8 fund. It is co-managed by three Managing Directors (Partners): Erwann Le Ligné, Pierre Meignen and Benjamin Hara.
Olivier Millet, Member of Eurazeo’s Executive Board and Managing Partner-Small-mid buyout, said:
“Hitting our €1 billion target is hugely satisfying for our team, and I would like to thank all of its members for their very high level of expertise and commitment over the years. Eurazeo intends to help French SMEs speed up the process of becoming European and international champions. Our Group’s presence in 11 countries, along with our investment strategy that focuses on high-value-added sectors, are two major benefits that Eurazeo wants to bring to company managers, working closely with them and providing support that helps drive their growth.”
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