Fundraising

The Louisiana Municipal Police Employees’ Retirement System committed $15m to the fund.

The fund, Partners Group Global Real Estate 2014, is targeting $1bn and plans to make 25% of its investments in real estate secondaries.

JB Hayes, director of private markets at wealth management firm CTC/MyCFO, has been recommending his high net worth clients curb their investments in secondaries as pricing has reached new highs.

Fund of funds firm Mantra expects to close its latest fund in the next four weeks after 10 months of fundraising. The firm focuses on niche and listed private equity strategies in sectors including oil and gas, mining, litigation funding, intellectual property and agribusiness.

Ardian is hiring throughout the company, including in its fund of funds business. Its portfolio companies include US pet supply store giant PetSmart.

The firm has already committed 21% of Stafford International Timberland VII’s $484 million and plans to open an office in Latin America in the third quarter.

The fund, which had a first close nearly 18 months ago, was oversubscribed.

The average size of funds that closed in the first quarter was less than half of the average size of funds that closed in the same period in 2014.

The Paris-based private equity intermediary will use the capital mainly to focus on marketing its platform to potential new members.

The Paris-based firm will return to market just a year after closing its $9bn sixth secondaries fund