New GTCR Fund Targets Junior Debt –

GTCR Golder Rauner LLC this month began talking to its limited partners about raising a $400 million mezzanine fund to invest alongside its buyout vehicle, Partner Bruce Rauner said.

This follows the lead of several other firms targeting growth investments that also have launched mezzanine vehicles. Thomas H. Lee Co., for one, currently is preparing to launch a $1 billion mezzanine effort (BUYOUTS Jan. 25, p. 1).

The GTCR fund will invest exclusively alongside the buyout firm in its deals. “It is going to be focused on mezzanine lending to our portfolio companies and to our GTCR consolidations and won’t be going into other people’s buyouts,” Mr. Rauner said. “It’s really focused on us and our process.”

The mezzanine fund will invest alongside the $870 million GTCR Fund VI, L.P., which was raised last year (BUYOUTS May 18, 1998, p. 1) after Mr. Rauner and eight other principals from Golder, Thoma, Cressey, Rauner Inc. formed GTCR.