Committed Advisors nears final close on Fund II

Paris-based Committed Advisors has raised €350 million of its €400 million target for its Committed Advisors Secondary Fund II, which is already 15 to 20 percent invested and close to closing on its sixth deal.

Should fundraising momentum continue at its current pace, the firm may raise more than its target.

“Right now secondaries are very fashionable: it’s a good time to be in the market fundraising,” said Committed Advisors managing partner Daniel Benin.

All of Fund I’s existing investors have re-upped, mostly with larger commitments, and there have been an additional number of new investors, Benin said.

Committed Advisors was set up in 2010 by former professionals from AXA Private Equity, now known as Ardian. The firm’s first fund raised €257 million in 2011 for investments across Europe, the US and emerging markets.

Fund II will continue the same strategy, with roughly two-thirds of its capital expected to be spent on fund stakes, with the balance reserved for direct secondaries investments.

“What really matters in keeping the same level of returns and being able to generate the same kind of returns, [which is] requiring more expertise and creativity than was maybe necessary three or four years ago,” Benin said.

Benin said a similar investment strategy would be used to invest Fund II as Fund I: direct investments and secondaries fund investments

Fund II had its first close in December 2013 on $300 million, with Fund I having a final close at €257 million in July 2011, according to PEI Research & Analytics.