Ardian raises record infra secondaries fund – exclusive

The investment firm has amassed $1.7bn for the vehicle and is eyeing a summer final close.

Ardian is set to close on the largest amount of capital ever raised for infrastructure secondaries, Secondaries Investor has learned.

The Paris-headquartered investment firm has amassed $1.7 billion for ASF VII Infrastructure, according to a source familiar with the fundraise. The vehicle is its second fund dedicated to the strategy.

Ardian had collected at least $700 million for the fund as of early March and was planning to hold the first close on the vehicle by the end of that month, as Secondaries Investor previously reported. The fund was registered in the UK in July.

Limited partners who have committed to ASF VII Infrastructure include European Investment Fund, Université de Montréal, Dow Employees Pension Plan Trust and Canadian insurance firm Industrial Alliance, according to filings with the UK’s Companies House.

The firm’s first secondaries fund focusing on the asset class was its $525 million ASF VI Infrastructure fund, which closed in 2015 as an add-on to its 2014-vintage AXA Secondary Fund VI secondaries fund.

At $1.7 billion, ASF VII Infrastructure is around $300 million bigger than Partners Group’s Global Infrastructure 2015 which had amassed €1.3 billion out of a €1.5 billion target as of March, according to Infrastructure Investor data. The Partners fund focuses on secondaries as well as primary and direct opportunities.

In April HarbourVest Partners raised $366 million for Real Assets Fund III, which will focus on secondaries deals in the energy, power, infrastructure and natural resources sectors. The vehicle was aiming to raise $500 million.

Setter Capital estimated deal volume in infrastructure secondaries at $1.6 billion for 2016.

Ardian declined to comment.