News & Analysis

3i, Apax funds included in NIG portfolio sale

Kuwaiti conglomerate National Industries Group has sold a portfolio of fund stakes to The Blackstone Group’s Strategic Partners.

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Private equity funds managed by 3i Group and Apax Partners are included in the portfolio of fund interests that National Industries Group (NIG) sold last month, UK regulatory filings disclosed.

Kuwaiti manufacturing and financial services conglomerate NIG sold a portfolio of private equity fund interests to The Blackstone Group’s Strategic Partners. Known funds in the portfolio include Carlyle Europe Partners II and II and Carlyle Asia Partners III, Secondaries Investor reported.

Additional funds in the portfolio include 3i Eurofunds VI and V and Apax Europe VII.

The 2003-vintage 3i Eurofund IV closed on €3 billion, according to PEI’s Research and Analytics division. The fund was generating a 2.3x gross money multiple as of September 2014.

Meanwhile Eurofund V is a 2006-vintage fund that raised €5 billion, surpassing its €3.5 billion target. The fund has agreed to three exits this year, including Nordic inspection and certification company Inspecta and specialist chemicals distributor Azelis. The fund also partially realised Finnish telecommunication company Eltel through an initial public offering on the Stockholm Stock Exchange.

Eurofund V was generating a gross money multiple of 1.3x as of last September.

Apax Europe VII is a 2007-vintage, $11.2 billion fund that invested in medium- and large-sized pan-European buyouts. Earlier this month the fund agreed to sell its stake in Italian bank Banca Farmafactoring to an affiliate of Centerbridge Partners and in March the fund agreed to publicly list Auto Trader Group on the London Stock Exchange for £2.35 ($3.47; €3.25) per share.

Fund VII was generating an internal rate of return of 4.4 percent as of September 2013, according to documents from the California State Teachers’ Retirement System, a limited partner in the fund.

Spokespersons from both 3i and Apax declined to comment.

Strategic Partners funded the portfolio using its latest secondaries fund which closed on $4.4 billion last October. The firm was unavailable to comment by press time.