Adams Street CIO Smits to step down

Adams Street Partners‘ chief investment officer Hanneke Smits has decided to step down at the end of the year, according to a statement from the firm.

Smits, who is based in London, has decided to leave in order to take a “career break” and focus on other challenges and other interests that she wasn’t able to pursue as CIO.

Smits joined Adams Street in 1997 and was initially responsible for opening the firm’s London office. As CIO she develops firm’s global investment strategy and chairs the primary and secondary investment committees, according to the firm’s websites.

She will continue chairing the secondary investment committee in the immediate future, Adams Street said.

Smits will remain with Adams Street until at least the end of 2014 in order to ensure an orderly transition of her duties, the firm said. It is unclear who will replace Smits and Adams Street did not return a request for comment by press time.

Last year, Adams Street closed its fifth secondaries fund on $1 billion, well above its $750 million target. Fund V will invest using the same strategy as Adams Street’s prior secondary vehicles, targeting opportunities in both the small- and large-ends of the market. The firm’s secondaries group aims to invest between $5 million and $500 million in fund interests, direct secondary transactions and general partner restructurings.