New £10m PE fund launched by River Capital

A new £10 private equity fund has been launched by Liverpool-based River Capital.

The new fund is supported by a cornerstone investment from parent company MSIF.

It provides investment from £500,000 up to £2m to support North West SMEs with support for acquisitions, management buy out/in, partial realisations and growth funding.

The launch of the fund is part of River Capital’s ongoing growth strategy and is the third new fund launched within the past eight months following the announcements of its £8m Business Growth Loan Fund and the North’s first dedicated artificial intelligence fund, ‘fund:AI’.

River Capital CEO, Mark Borzomato, said: “I am excited by the launch of our new private equity fund and the opportunities it presents. As with all River Capital’s funds, we are looking to back ambitious management teams.

“The new fund is focused on providing and supporting such teams to acquire the business they work for or fuel its future growth plans be it by acquisition or organic expansion.

“For founders and owners, be they corporate or individual shareholders, the fund would allow them to exit and retire or realise a portion of their wealth and allow the management team to acquire a stake in the business they run.”

He added: “In turn, new ownership and our support can unlock potential in the business. There is significant evidence private equity-backed businesses perform more strongly than others, but often the funds providing such support are focused on larger transactions. We believe there is huge untapped potential in the North West at the sub-£2m investment level, or sub-£10m transaction level.

“At River we are hugely experienced in supporting businesses at this stage of their development, with a strong track record of success.”

The fund will invest across a broad range of sectors and expects to announce the conclusion of its first deal imminently. Daniel Hayhurst, partner at Brabners, advised on the formation.