EQT has reached a €22 billion (about $23.5 billion) hard cap for its 10th flagship fund, marking the firm’s largest fundraise to date and the third largest European buyout fund on record.
The new vehicle, for which EQT has been on the fundraising trail for nearly two years, had an initial target of €20 billion and is 40% larger than its predecessor, which reached a €15.6 billion close in early 2021.
Mega-funds—defined as over €5 billion—have dominated European PE fundraising of late. According to PitchBook’s latest European PE Breakdown, just five vehicles accounted for more than half of all capital raised in 2023. This is the fourth flagship buyout fund by a European manager to raise over €5 billion in the past year as LPs focus their capital on managers that can demonstrate strong track records.
Last month, Cinven raised €14.4 billion for its eighth fund, while CVC Capital Partners broke records in July when it raised €28.6 billion for its ninth flagship vehicle. Prior to that, Permira reached a €17.8 billion close in March. Pai Partners meanwhile raised a €7.5 billion fund in November.
EQT said in a statement that the private wealth segment accounted for an increased share of fund commitments as a result of the firm’s drive to increase access to the high-net-worth segment via its open-ended fund, EQT Nexus. The changing investor base reflects a broader trend in the asset class, where fund managers are increasingly targeting individual investors.
EQT X is already around 30% to 35% deployed, having made seven investments since it launched in early 2022. These include biopharma transport services company Envirotainer, medical components supplier Zeus, invoice software company Billtrust and animal pharmaceutical business Dechra Pharmaceuticals.
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