London — IK Investment Partners (“IK”), a leading pan-European private equity firm, today announced the closing of its IK Small Cap II Fund (“IK Small Cap II” or “the Fund”) at the hard cap of €550 million set out in the Fund’s Articles of Association. The fund was significantly oversubscribed and was placed exclusively with existing investors of IK.
The new fund is twice the size of its predecessor, which was IK’s first small cap fund closed in March 2016 at a hard cap of 277 million euros. The IK Small Cap I Fund has invested in 12 companies, of which three investments have been successfully sold to date.
Like its predecessor fund, IK Small Cap II will focus on growth companies in the core markets of Benelux, DACH, France and the Scandinavian countries. The investments are carried out by a dedicated small cap team with offices in Amsterdam, Hamburg, Paris and Stockholm.
Christopher Masek (photo), CEO of IK Investment Partners, said, “Companies, such as those that fall within the investment focus of IK Small Cap II, are, we believe, the drivers of economic growth and job creation in Europe. The continued confidence and support of our investors underscores the high importance of investing in this market segment, enabling companies to enter their next phase of growth.”
Kristian Carlsson Kemppinen, Partner and responsible for the IK Small Cap Funds at IK Investment Partners, added: “In 2017, we have seen an unprecedented abundance of investment opportunities, with very creative and ambitious companies. We look forward to identifying and helping these future industry leaders reach their full potential.”
Nils Pohlmann, Partner at IK Investment Partners, said: “We are encouraged by the large number of excellent companies in the DACH region and the resulting investment opportunities. IK’s value creation approach combines buy-and-build strategies and operational excellence, making it ideally aligned with high-growth national and global champions of the German Mittelstand.”
Gregor Korte, Partner at IK Investment Partners, added: “Our far-reaching European platform, combined with our extensive local market knowledge, offers unique growth opportunities to ambitious German small cap companies. We look forward to partnering further with talented entrepreneurs in the DACH region and helping them grow their businesses.”
Kirkland & Ellis was mandated to provide legal advice to the IK Small Cap II Fund.
About IK Investment Partners
is a European private equity firm with an investment focus on the Nordic countries, the DACH region and France/Benelux. Since 1989, IK has launched funds with a cumulative equity volume of more than 9.5 billion euros and invested in more than 115 European companies through the funds. The IK funds invest together with the respective management and their investors in medium-sized companies with significant growth potential in order to create successful, well-positioned companies with excellent prospects for the future.