Fundraising of the Year – Mid Cap
(Fund size - below USD2bn)

BPEA EQT Mid-Market Growth Fund (EQT)

EQT closed its Asia mid-market fund – the first strategy launched in the region following the merger with Baring Private Equity Asia – on USD 1.6bn in May 2024, exceeding the USD 750m target. The fundraising process began in October 2022 and a first close of approximately USD 400m came at the end of that year. LPs that have disclosed their involvement include Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, which also co-invested in the debut deal – Malaysia-headquartered Viewpoint Software. The fund focuses on technology, services, and healthcare, looking to meet the needs of mid-market companies that often get overlooked by large buyout strategies.

Five V Buyout Fund V (Five V Capital)

Five V Capital closed its fifth Australia and New Zealand-focused fund at the hard cap of AUD 770m (USD 525m) in December 2023. Backers include global high net worth individuals, family offices, endowments, and financial institutions. The firm has scaled rapidly, raising AUD 250m and AUD 550m for its third and fourth funds in 2019 and 2021, respectively. Over the course of these vintages, an LP base dominated by the private wealth segment has gradually become more institutionalised. Fund V will continue the existing strategy of investing in high-quality middle market businesses, employing “an industry agnostic and opportunity led mindset.”

JGIA No.3 Investment (Japan Growth Investments Alliance)

Japan Growth Investment Alliance (JGIA) closed its third fund in March 2024 with JPY 65bn (USD 436m) in commitments, beating the JPY 60bn target. The total includes a JPY 10bn co-investment vehicle. The process launched in September 2023 – with a PPM issued one month later – and was heavily oversubscribed. When the firm closed Fund II on JPY 38bn in 2020, there was only one global institutional investor. In Fund III, overseas LPs – including the likes of family offices, insurers, and fund-of-funds – account for one-third of the corpus. Investors from the US, Europe, and Asia are represented in the LP base.

Kedaara Capital IV (Kedaara Capital)

Kedaara Capital completed a first and final close of USD 1.74bn on its fourth India fund in April 2024, beating both the USD 1.5bn target and the USD 1.08bn raised for Fund III. The process took three-and-a-half months. While North America still accounts for the largest share of Fund IV on a regional basis, several other investors – including a couple of family offices – are at near parity with peers from that geography in terms of individual commitments. This is partly because allocation cutbacks focused on larger investors, with much of the step-up in capacity being shared among existing mid-size LPs.

UCK Partners I (UCK Partners)

UCK Partners closed its third South Korean mid-market buyout fund – and first raised as a fully independent manager – in January 2024 with KRW 1.1trn (USD 822m) in commitments. After launching the process in late 2022, a first close of KRW 816bn took place in March 2023 featuring domestic LPs. Korea’s National Pension Service signed up as an anchor investor, with other commitments coming from LPs in Funds I and II. In Fund II, which closed on KRW 500bn in 2019, there were no international investors. For Fund III, the overseas contribution is KRW 250bn, or 23%, with fund-of-funds well represented.