Unigestion launches secondary private equity fund
Unigestion has launched a secondary private equity fund that targets small, non-auctioned secondary deals below €50m.
Unigestion Secondary V, the new fund, focuses on portfolios of high quality companies at attractive valuations.
With a global team of 43 private equity professionals, Unigestion sources secondary opportunities from its network of more than 500 General Partners (GPs), limited partners, small intermediaries and selected specialist secondary direct managers. Drawing on its vast experience of the global small and mid-market, Unigestion is able to access transactions away from the hunting grounds of other secondary investors, the company said in a note.
The secondary market has transformed in recent years with the development of new types of specialised secondary transactions such as fund restructurings, secondary directs and other liquidity solutions."
It added: "Unigestion follows a rigorous due diligence process, applying a bottom-up evaluation of every single portfolio company which includes detailed financial modelling, interviews with senior company management and debt analysis.
"This leads to an emphasis on portfolios of companies with solid business models and visible exit routes. Consequently, returns are driven by future company performance rather than leverage or discounts."
Christophe De Dardel, head of Private Equity, Unigestion said: "The secondary market has transformed in recent years with the development of new types of specialised secondary transactions such as fund restructurings, secondary directs and other liquidity solutions. Unigestion has been at the forefront of this continued innovation and have led multiple complex secondary transactions at the small end of the market, which have allowed us to access high quality, mature assets at compelling valuations."
