London-based Claret Capital wraps up €297 million fund to back life sciences startups

Debt funding has been on the rise in Europe’s tech ecosystem in recent times. Klarna and Revolut-backed GP Bullhound closed a £257 million fund last year.

And now, joining the ranks, London-based growth capital provider Claret Capital has wrapped up a €297 million fund to back innovative businesses in the technology and life sciences sector. Dubbed as Claret European Growth Capital Fund III, the fund will invest in about 50-60 new companies. The ticket range will be typically between €1 million to €50 million. It will focus on innovative growth stage technology and life science businesses throughout Europe to support organic growth and M&A.

With commitments of €297 million, the firm has closed over its original target of €250 million. In addition to the final close of the fund, co-investment agreements will provide additional firepower to offer loan facilities of up to €50 million. The combined resources of the final close of the fund and the co-invest vehicles will let the company support businesses with over €500 million in the next three years.

According to the company, Claret has already roped in 29 businesses in its Fund III portfolio. The fund was backed by five new institutional investors including Allied Irish Banks, Aozora Bank, Banca March, HNA, and the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF). Repeat investors participating in the fund included EIF, British Business Investments, RAG-Stiftung, Certior Capital and KfW Capital.

The UK-based growth capital firm funds high growth business with proven management teams in need of less dilutive capital to drive their continued ambitions. It has backed over 150 companies and invested more than half a billion euros. Recent exits include numerous acquisitions such as Packlink (acquired by Auctane), Aava (acquired by Pepperl & Fuchs), Bright Computing (acquired by NVIDIA) and Miss Group (bought out by Perwyn & management).

Johan Kampe, managing partner of Claret said: “We have closed our third fund over target and will continue to support existing portfolio companies and future European growth businesses. From enterprise software to fintech startups to marketplaces, we look forward to partnering with leadership teams disrupting the industries they work in. In a market where uncertainty is impacting venture capital funding, the outlook remains positive in growth financing.”

David Bateman, managing partner of Claret, added: “Closing above target underlines the tremendous opportunity that we have within the wider European tech and life sciences sector. We are seeing a strong demand for our capital from Europe’s best entrepreneurs and equity investors.”