Coller to use proceeds from GP stake sale to reinvest in funds

Coller Capital, one of the last remaining independent secondaries firms of size, has reconfigured the structure of its management company, a year after its founder ceded equity to fellow partners.

The London-headquartered firm has sold a passive minority stake to GP stakes investor Hunter Point Capital, according to a statement.

All proceeds from the transaction will be reinvested into Coller funds, the statement said. It’s unclear whether this refers to being used as GP commitment and a spokesperson declined to comment. There will be no change in governance, the investment process or day-to-day management of the firm.

The investment “aims to support Coller’s long-term growth”, according to the statement, which noted the transaction “builds on the success of Coller’s market-leading credit secondaries business and its latest innovative RMB fund, as well as accelerating the expansion of its reach in the private wealth market”.

The transaction is the third in the space of a month for New York-headquartered Hunter Point, which last week disclosed that it had acquired a minority stake in UK mid-market firm Inflexion. Two weeks prior, it said it had bought a minority stake in L Catterton.

Last May, founder and chief investment officer Jeremy Coller ceded 25 percent of equity in the firm to the firm’s partners, Secondaries Investor reported. The move was understood to be part of long-term planning for ownership succession at the firm.

Secondaries Investor reported in 2021 that Coller Capital had approached at least two private equity firms with the intention of selling the business.

The Hunter Point transaction means that almost all of the large secondaries firms, according to the SI 50 ranking, have either sold a stake, gone public or are part of a wider asset management platform.

Coller is raising its latest private equity flagship, Coller International Partners IX, which has a $12 billion target, according to Secondaries Investor data. Louisiana State Employees’ Retirement System has made a $110 million commitment to the vehicle.

Last week, the firm confirmed it is seeking 1.5 billion yuan ($217.9 million; €199.4 million) for Coller Capital Secondaries RMB I Fund, a year and a half after Secondaries Investor first reported that it was considering launching an RMB fund strategy. The firm also confirmed it had reached a first close for the vehicle and declined to provide details on the amount.

Hunter Point launched in 2020 with Bennett Goodman, co-founder of credit outfit GSO Capital Partners, now Blackstone Credit, and Avi Kalichstein, a former managing principal with asset manager builder and investor Easterly Partners Group and managing director at JC Flowers & Co, at the helm.

Evercore and Morgan Stanley served as joint financial advisers on the Coller/Hunter Point transaction, while Kirkland & Ellis provided legal counsel to Coller and Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson served as legal counsel to Hunter Point.