Hanover Investors raises £150m for new £300m PE fund

Hanover Investors has raised £150m for its third private equity investment fund, which has a target of £300m and will focus on acquisition opportunities in small cap public markets. Fund III is expected to hold its final close by June 2023.

Hanover which was founded in 2002 and focuses on investing in illiquid, under analysed companies in the UK and the Nordics, has achieved IRRs in excess of 40% over the last two decades.

Hanover Investors’ portfolio includes Brady Technologies, a provider of commodities and energy trading and risk management software; ClearStar, a provider of technology-based services specialising in background and medical screening; Kalibrate, a provider of pricing software and network planning models to the petrol retail sector; and ZetaDisplay, a service and software company headquartered in Sweden that delivers digital signage solutions.

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“The small cap market is often overlooked but this also means that many companies have unrealised potential and are ripe for transformation. Despite – and indeed because of – the current economic headwinds, the opportunities today are greater than they were twenty years ago. The announcement today about Hanover Investors Fund III gives us the firepower to seize the opportunities in the market,” said Matthew Peacock, Founder and Chairman of Hanover Investors.

“It is not a “popular” market which means we do not operate in an auction environment, which is important to us. What we have is pattern recognition, through our in-depth research, where we can identify those companies which we can take to the next level. We create value for our investors by building better businesses.”

Hanover Investors’ portfolio includes Brady Technologies, a leading provider of commodities and energy trading and risk management software; ClearStar, Inc. which is a leading provider of technology-based services specialising in background and medical screening; Kalibrate, a market leading provider of pricing software and network planning models to the petrol retail sector, with significant market presence both in the UK and the US; and ZetaDisplay, a service and software company headquartered in Sweden that delivers digital signage solutions.

“This is our third private equity fund, which is aligned with our consistent concentrated strategy. Fund III is targeted at investing into a portfolio of an estimated six to seven companies. There will be a significant portion of co-investment, and a focus on operational rather than financial leverage as these are key features which have worked well in our first two funds,” added Mr Peacock.

“Our approach has always been to have world class operators in the firm, who apply large cap experience to the small cap market. In the last 18 months we have been widening and deepening our bench strength in preparation for raising for Fund III, implementing the strategy as well as advancing the overall Hanover Investors platform.”

The senior team includes John Woodard who has 25 years’ experience in the private equity industry in positions spanning Credit Suisse First Boston, Wesray Capital Corporation, The Blackstone Group and Vestar Capital Corporation; Brett Lankester who was CEO of Union Bancaire Privee (UBP) in London, having sold his wealth management business, ACPI, to UBP in 2018. He was also previously a Managing Director at Goldman Sachs; Jocelyn Dehnert who is an experienced Board adviser with global management experience and deep expertise in leadership strategy; Michael Comish who was previously a Director in the Operations Group at TPG as well as serving as Tesco’s Chief Digital Officer; and, Jason Carley, who has significant experience in investing over €600mn in complex debt and equity special situations assets across the UK, Germany, Nordics, Benelux, Australia and developing markets. He was previously a Managing Director at Merrill Lynch.

Source: Private Equity Wire

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