CVC Capital Partners closed on €4.61 billion (around $4.9 billion) Tuesday for the third fund in its long-hold PE strategy as European fundraising gets off to a slow 2025 start.
The new vehicle—CVC Strategic Opportunities III—is the same size as its predecessor, which closed in 2019 on €4.6 billion. The strategy targets a holding period of six to 15 years—longer than the four to five years of traditional PE funds. It will target companies in Europe and North America with enterprise values between €1 billion and €5 billion.
Including Fund III, CVC’s strategic opportunities strategy has around $15 billion under management and targets noncyclical sectors. Current investments include Pennsylvania-based vegetation manager Asplundh Tree Expert, French diagnostic equipment-maker Sebia and Denmark-based coating products manufacturer Hempel.
Long-hold strategies have gained popularity in recent years as GPs look to generate higher returns over a longer period against the backdrop of a tough exit market.
CVC’s fund close comes as European PE fundraising tracks below last year’s pace, with only €13.8 billion raised across 19 funds.
The largest funds raised so far this year are Ardian‘s Expansion Fund VI—which reached 10% above its initial hard cap, at €3.2 billion—and Thoma Bravo‘s inaugural Europe-focused fund, which closed on €1.8 billion.
Featured image by Witthaya Prasongsin/Getty Images
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