HarbourVest shops $1bn pre-crisis portfolio – exclusive

HarbourVest Partners is offloading a portfolio of pre-crisis fund stakes worth at least $1 billion, Secondaries Investor has learned.

The Boston-headquartered investment firm is working with advisor Park Hill on the stake sale, according to two sources familiar with the deal. The portfolio contains interests held in around nine fund of funds vehicles and represents more than 200 underlying fund stakes, one of the sources said.

The sale is expected to close in December, the source added.

This is at least the second large portfolio HarbourVest has brought to market this year. In April the firm was seeking buyers for a bundle of private equity stakes it acquired through the purchase of listed vehicle Conversus Capital, as Secondaries Investor reported.

Secondaries buyers including Partners Group and Ardian have offloaded portfolios of fund stakes over the last 12 months as pricing for interests hit record highs.

Average high bids for buyout funds hit 98 percent of net asset value in the first half of this year amid gains in public markets, according to Greenhill Cogent’s July Secondary Pricing Trends & Analysis report.

HarbourVest and Park Hill did not return requests for comment.