Neuberger raises $4.9bn in Fund V close

Neuberger Berman has held final close on its fifth flagship secondaries fund, collecting nearly double the capital raised for its predecessor.

The New York-headquartered investment manager collected $4.9 billion for NB Secondary Opportunities Fund V, surpassing its $3 billion target, according to a statement seen by Secondaries Investor.

The fund has been in market since March 2020, according to Secondaries Investor data, receiving support from limited partners such as City of Milwaukee Employees’ Retirement System and Alaska Retirement Management Board, which each committed $100 million, and Vermont State Retirement Systems, which committed $70 million.

Its predecessor, Fund IV, held a final close in January 2017 on $2.5 billion, against a target of $2 billion.

In the statement, global co-head of secondaries Ben Perl cited Neuberger’s “fundamental approach” to underwriting,” research capabilities and broad network of relationships through its primaries, co-investments, direct lending and secondaries platforms as differentiating factors for investors.

Neuberger’s secondaries funds target GP-led and LP-led transactions in the private equity middle market, with an emphasis on concentrated, high-conviction deals.

In January, it co-led a single-asset deal centred on Texas animal hospital Innovetive Petcare, a Metalmark Capital portfolio company, Secondaries Investor reported. The continuation vehicle came to $450 million in size and Glendower Capital was co-lead.

Other transactions it has led include a continuation fund deal worth around $500 million centred on a portfolio of mid-market healthcare and technology assets from the 2012-vintage Riverside Fund V, Secondaries Investor reported.

Secondaries fundraising fell 30 percent year-on-year to $31.2 billion in the first half of 2022, with a total of 32 funds closing. Many LPs find themselves overallocated to private markets at a time when a record of managers are returning to market, Secondaries Investor noted.