Luxembourg-based Castik Capital has reached a €2 billion final close on its third fund, beating its initial target, making it an outlier in the tough fundraising environment for emerging managers.
The new fund—Epic III—originally sought to raise €1.75 billion. It is also 60% larger than its predecessor, which held a €1.25 billion close in October 2020.
Castik—which was founded in 2014 to target the B2B and IT sectors in Europe—seems something of an exception in a market that has been tough for emerging managers, classed as those who have raised fewer than four funds. According to PitchBook data, European emerging managers like Castik have been struggling for some time with declining trust from risk-averse limited partners.
The data shows that investors prefer to commit capital to more experienced firms. Pre-pandemic, around 20% of capital was raised by emerging firms, while so far this year, only around 8% of that capital is going to those firms.
However, European capital commitments have grown steadily in the last five years and are set to grow further in 2024.
According to PitchBook data, European funds have raised €99.3 billion so far this year, and with another quarter to go, this is expected to stay on par with or even surpass the capital raised in previous years.
Fund count, on the other hand, is steadily declining, highlighting investors’ preference for larger funds.
Modern buildings at the Place de l’Europe at night, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg
Featured image by Westend61/Getty Images
Learn about our editorial standards.
