Montana to launch New York office, hires former Newbury director

Switzerland-headquartered secondaries firm Montana Capital Partners is set to open a New York office.

The firm has hired former Newbury Partners director and investment committee member David Overton as director and head of the New York office, according to a statement. Prior to joining, Overton held roles at Coller Capital and Merrill Lynch.

Montana is establishing a team of four investment professionals in New York, according to the statement. Overton will be joined by two investment professionals who will transfer from Switzerland. The firm will also make another hire for the office, a spokesperson told Secondaries Investor.

Managing partner Eduard Lemle will continue to oversee Montana’s investment activities in the US from the firm’s Baar, Switzerland headquarters, the statement added.

Half of Montana’s last three funds were deployed into the US market, the statement said. The New York office is set to open in June.

Managing partner and CEO Marco Wulff said in the statement that the establishment of an on-the-ground team in the US reflects Montana’s desire to “consolidate our position as a leading secondary mid-market firm with a global investment mandate”.

Lemle added: “The current more volatile macroeconomic environment represents a unique opportunity for private equity secondaries, as it greatly increases investors’ demand for liquidity, offering the possibility for compelling return opportunities for investors. This makes it an exciting time for David to join us as we further build out our coverage of the US market for both [LP-led and GP-led] transactions”.

Montana recently took the lead on European mid-market-focused investor Adiuva Capital‘s single-asset continuation fund transaction, worth €250 million including a debt financing.

Adiuva Capital, which primarily invests in German-speaking countries, moved Sanecum Group, which has 46 multidisciplinary sites, into a continuation fund, Secondaries Investor reported at the time. Family offices and institutional investors also invested in the transaction alongside Montana.

Montana’s latest flagship, mcp Opportunity Secondary Program V, closed at the end of 2020 on €1.3 billion, above its €1 billion target.

The firm was acquired by PGIM, the asset management arm of insurance company Prudential Financial, in 2021.