Via Venture Partners collects about $150 mln for third fund

Nordic private equity firm Via Venture Partners has raised about $150 million for its third fund. The investors are PFA and ATP. The fund will focus on Nordic companies in the tech and services sectors.

PRESS RELEASE

Via Venture Partners raises a new fund of DKK 1 billion (Fond III) with PFA and ATP as equal investors. The investment focus will continue to be Nordic businesses within technology and services.

The new fund is the third launched by the management company Via Venture Partners A/S, and while ATP has been the sole investor in the two earlier funds, PFA will join as 50% investor in the new DKK 1 billion fund.

Via Venture Partners has historically invested in very large companies like KMD, Neas Energy and Nets and at the same time in successful growth companies like Adform, Procom, UVData and EnviDan.

“We are very proud of that PFA together with ATP has chosen to invest in our Fond III”, says John Helmsøe-Zinck, managing partner of Via Venture Partners. “It is an outstanding foundation for us to have two of the most wellreputed Danish investors behind us. Our own profile as well as the profile of our investors will combined be a very interesting partner for all successful businesses.

PFA is pleased with the opportunity to invest in the new fund together with ATP:
”We have very good experience from our partnerships with ATP in other situations. We have conducted the usual thorough compulsory due diligence investigations, and Via Venture Partners have especially with their last fund demonstrated extraordinary performance, therefore the foundation is in place for us to invest”, says PFA Asset Management CIO Henrik Nøhr Poulsen.

ATP has had great benefit of Via Venture Partners over the last ten years – both as a profitable investment and as a well-reputed and trustworthy cooperation partner. ”I am convinced that Via Venture Partners will continue in the same tracks to create value for PFA and ATP as joint investors and simultaneously drive growth in the businesses the fund invests in”, says managing partner Torben Vangstrup, ATP Private Equity Partners.

Via Venture Partners is a leading private equity investor in the Nordics with focus on technology and services businesses. Via Venture Partners Fond I & II K/S are both subsidiaries of ATP, who has contributed 99.8% of the equity capital in the two funds (totaling DKK 2 billion). The remaining equity capital is invested by the employees in
Via Venture Partners A/S. Via Venture Partners A/S is the management company for the funds. Via Venture Partners is, what in technical language is referred to as, a multi stage private equity investor; i.e. the funds invest both in very large companies as well as in small and medium sized companies. At the same time Via Venture Partners is more focused on specific industry segments than many of the private equity peers.

Historically, Via Venture Partners has been interested in software, internet, technology, energy and service businesses, which is mirrored in the investments.
While e.g. retail, pharmaceutical development, groceries and a number of other industries have not been in focus. In 2015 Via Venture Partners Fond I and II together showed a net profit of DKK 556 million, the majority of which was related to Fond II. PFA and ATP will each invest DKK 499 million in Fond III and the employees DKK 2 million, in total DKK 1 billion.